Life's Chances
by gatechic
Summary: This is a sequel to an earlier fic. No Name is back and wants the Agency destroyed and Darien as his prize.
1. Default Chapter

Working Title: Life's Chances  
  
Sequel to "State of Mind" which can be found at http://www.fawkesyandhobbesy.com/alli_lori_index.htm  
  
Author: Lori with a little help from Alli  
  
Rating: PG13  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters or basic story lines of "The Invisible Man". If there are any similarities of any person, real or fictional, dead or alive and any plot similarities to any current fics posted, being written or is currently floating around in someone's head is purely a coincidence. I'm certainly not getting paid for this at all. So why do it? Cause I want to keep the best scifi series alive.  
  
Description: No Name is back and has a weapon of his own to destroy the Agency once and for all. Darien must fight an enemy to keep his own sanity intact and save a friend.   
  
Chapter 1  
  
"You know that ol' sayin' that goes, 'things happen for a reason'? Here's the thing, I've never really believed that, I mean what could be the reason for my mom dying and my dad leaving Kevin and me? So we could go live with Uncle Pete and Aunt Celia? I can't find a reason good enough for me on that one. So, what's the reason for me getting a gland in my head and losing Casey, Kate and Allianora? That, I'm about to find out."  
  
A grey toned world is what Darien saw as he made his way to the house. His heart pounded so hard that it was no problem keeping him under the protective coating of invisibility. He walked slowly and quietly up to the house. Careful not to make any noise, he took each step slowly up the steps to the back of the house until he reached the top. Now was the tricky part, time to walk across the wooden planks of the old house. As a kid he had known every creek his Uncle and Aunt's house made and he knew what parts of the porch to avoid.   
  
But this house was new to him. Like a soldier making his way through a mind field, he carefully put his weight on each foot and slowly, methodically made advancement on the unsuspecting terrorists.  
  
Hobbes sat in the back of the van, sweating bullets. This was a very dangerous mission. So dangerous, that Fawkes was ordered to wear a bullet proof vest. Of course, he complained that it wouldn't protect his head, but agreed none-the-less. He held the earpiece close to his ear and heard every breath that came out of Fawkes' mouth. Silently, almost trying to communicate with Fawkes through his mind, he coached his partner along. 'Nice and easy, Fawkesy, that's it, take your time,' Hobbes thought to himself, not wanting to say anything out loud fearing that he might scare Fawkes and blow the whole thing. Not to mention get Fawkes killed.  
  
Claire and a team of cleared medical personnel waited in a truck a few blocks away. Inside the truck resembled a trauma center that any hospital would be envious of and on the outside, the truck resembled a UPS delivery truck. If Claire was in the habit of biting her nails, she probably would be at this point. The whole team sat in an eerie silence.   
  
Darien tried to peak through the back window but all the shades were drawn. From what they learned from the FBI debriefing, the terrorists mainly kept to one of the back rooms. Darien took a deep breath, held it and turned the knob.  
  
Hobbes radioed to Claire, "Keep, he's going in."  
  
Claire held her hands together, "Dahrien," her ascent drawing out the 'r' to sound more like an 'h' was in his name, "Please be careful."  
  
The knob turned in Darien's hand all the way around revealing to him that the door was not locked. Darien silently said to himself, 'I don't like this. The door is unlocked.'  
  
'This isn't good, my friend.' Hobbes thought to himself. All he could hear was Darien's heavy breathing. 'Take it easy, Fawkes. I don't need you hyperventilating on me.'  
  
Darien poked his head in to get a look inside to see if the coast was clear, all was quiet inside the house, too quiet. He opened the door a little more and squeezed his thin frame between the door and the frame. Darien closed the door quietly. If he left it opened a terrorist might see it and the whole operation is over before it could get started.  
  
"Bobby," Claire said in an anxious tone, "Tell me." She hated the wait and wanted this to be over with. All Darien was supposed to do was go inside and report what was going inside the house. The FBI assured the Official that Fawkes was in no danger and for a precaution, they supplied the medical truck. Little comfort that gave Claire, she hoped they wouldn't need it.  
  
Darien walked through the kitchen into living room, noticing pictures of Hussein, Arafat, Gadafi and Bin Laden on the wall. 'Hmm…welcome to the wall of the world's great humanitarians,' he thought to himself. Darien made his way to the back of the house. There he found a door slightly opened. He peeked inside and saw six dead terrorists. Darien opened the door a little more to get a better look, "Ah crap." Darien started to feel a little drowsy and his breathing became a little raspy.  
  
Hobbes noticed the way Darien was breathing, "Fawkes, you okay there, partner? What happened?"  
  
"I don't know, Hobbes, but I think they're all dead."  
  
"FAWKES!!! Get out of there!!!!" Hobbes yelled. He threw his earpiece down, opened up the door and leaped from the van. He held his walkie talkie to his mouth and shouted, "Abort mission…I repeat…abort mission!" At his command, agents came out of hiding and descended upon the house.  
  
Darien stumbled from the front door. He staggered towards the stairs, the quicksilver flaked off and his vision was extremely blurred. He couldn't see very well to gauge his footing; he missed the first step and tumbled down the steps to the walkway.   
  
By the time Hobbes got to Darien, he started to convulse. "Get the Keeper here now!!!" Hobbes barked as he frantically ripped Darien's shirt off. "Don't do this, Fawkes. You hear me, damn it, don't do this!" Hobbes watched with horror as Darien gasped for air and then stopped breathing. "NO!!" Hobbes felt for a pulse, it was weak. He unfastened the bullet proof vest and bent his head to feel and watch for any signs of breathing, there was none. He tilted Darien's head back using the chin lift method, pinched his nose shut and started breathing for Darien. Hobbes watched Darien's chest rise and fall back down. "Come on, damn it…breathe!"  
  
The truck raced across the lawn and came to a stop. Claire and the team jumped out from the back of the truck, "What the hell happened?" Claire shouted.  
  
"I don't know, he came out, fell and stopped breathing." Hobbes looked at her, "He's not gonna die is he, Claire?"  
  
Claire assessed Darien and said to one of nurses, "We need to intubate him now!" She looked at Hobbes with apprehension on her face. Hobbes understand that look, she wasn't going to promise something she couldn't keep. He sat back and let the medical team do their job.  
  
Claire inserted a breathing tube down Darien's throat. One of the nurses attached an ambu bag to the tube and started to squeeze it, forcing much needed air into Darien's lungs. Claire kept a close eye on his rising and falling chest. She checked his vitals then his eyes, "1mm in diameter…let's give him 1g of pralidoxime iodide."   
  
"What happened to him, Claire?" Hobbes asked.  
  
"Bobby, I'm not sure, but I would say he inhaled some type of poison gas," replied Claire. Uncertainty was clearly in her voice as she continued to work on Darien. She really wasn't sure, but all indications seem to point that way. The tests will reveal what really happened and if it was poison gas, what kind was it and who released it in the house?  
  
Agents rushed around trying to secure the area and while Hobbes watched Claire call out orders. Everyone was so concerned about what may have happened and the attempt to save Darien's life that no one noticed the bushes move as if someone had pushed through, invisible.  
  
~*~  
  
Across town hours later, Marek Schmitt, a tall brown haired man of medium build sat in the chair across from No Name. His legs were crossed and his fingers moved around like he was playing a piano on his knee.  
  
No Name was reading the report from the mission earlier at the terrorists hideout, "Things went well then on your first field mission?"  
  
"Yes, sir it did," Marek smiled, "They never saw me coming."  
  
~*~  
  
Lab 4 normally was quiet but on this day, the room was filled with the sounds of medical equipment. Claire rushed around checking tapes as machines spit them out, reading test results and spent most of the time mumbling to herself.   
  
Claire looked down at Darien, "Do your eyes still hurt?"  
  
Darien nodded. He was still intubated, his lungs were still too weak to work on their own. Claire frowned at her patient. She had seen Darien's sad puppy eye look before, but this was different, he was in pain and it showed.  
  
"Is your vision still blurred?"  
  
Darien nodded. Claire wrote down some notes.  
  
"How about the headache, still have it?"  
  
Darien nodded again. This time his eyes pleaded with her. He couldn't see her very well, but he knew she was there. Claire turned to one of the nurses and gave orders for intravenous medication at certain intervals. She patted Darien on his arm, "I have to go see the Official for a few minutes, I'll be back I promise. You're going to be fine, Darien. These people here will take care of you until I back." She smiled and watched him try to smile back. "Just try to relax, okay sweetheart?" She reached over and grabbed a few tissues. She wiped the clear fluid that leaked from his nose. Claire tossed the tissue in the garbage. Before she left, she wrote in his chart, "Rhinorrhea". She left Darien in good hands and went to the Official's office to give her report.  
  
Upstairs, Hobbes sat in the Official's office giving a verbal report of what happened during the mission. Hobbes answered the questions but his mind was on his partner, his friend fighting for his life in lab 4. He kicked himself for letting Darien go in, this should never had happened.  
  
"So when did you notice that something was wrong?" The Official asked with a genuine sound of concern in his voice.  
  
Hobbes raised a brow to the tone, "Fawkes was able to open the front door. It wasn't locked sir."  
  
"Hmmm…what happened next?"  
  
"Well, Fawkes went in," Hobbes paused to make a mental note of the events, "He was in for maybe five minutes, no more than then ten. He went to that back room like the F…B…I…said the terrorists would be," his tone noted distain for that agency, "Fawkes opened the door…said 'ah crap', that's when I noticed something was wrong."  
  
"By the way he said 'ah crap'?" The Official asked.   
  
"That's affirmative sir…you see, Fawkes has a certain way of saying 'ah crap' depending upon the situation, I've come to know them all sir." Hobbes proceeded to give the Official examples of the different tones of Darien's voice.  
  
The Official barked in annoyance, "Thank you, Bobby, now get to the point!"  
  
"Oh yes, sir, anyway as I was saying. This time it was different almost agitated and his breathing became different. He then told me that all the terrorists were dead. That's when I yelled to him to get out and aborted the mission."  
  
"Eberts, go see if Claire can come in here and give a report on Darien's condition."  
  
"Right away, sir." Eberts no sooner got to the door and it opened. He watched as Claire walked in, exhaustion written all over her face. "Oh," Eberts turned towards the Official, "Here she is."  
  
"Thank you, Eberts…good job as usual." The Official looked at Claire, "Well."  
  
"Darien is going to be fine. Bobby saved his life by starting CPR quickly." Claire smiled at Hobbes. "His symptoms are numerous, miosis…"  
  
"Miosis? Sorry, doctor but can you clarify?" The Official asked.  
  
"Its pupil constriction, it has to do with the oculomotor nerve. I had to give him diazepam to control the convulsions. He vomited when we got him here. His Cholinesterase levels were low." Claire noted the confused looks, "It's not important, but the levels were dangerously low. I put him on medication to raise the ChE levels. I'll know if it's working when I get the blood tests back. He was conscious when I left but he's still unable to breathe on his own. I have him on ventilation and I would say he is still in critical condition, but his chances of survival are increasing as he responds to treatment." Claire sat down, "He suffered respiratory failure due to central nervous system involvement, a nicotinic effect on the respiratory muscles, and or a muscarinic effect on the smooth muscle and secretory glands of the airway, resulted in bronchoconstriction and excess bronchial secretion."  
  
"What caused this?" The Official asked. He gave her a look that meant that he really wasn't interested in the medical specifics of Darien's diagnosis.   
  
"I'm waiting for some toxicology tests but I would say some type of nerve gas. The symptoms that he had are consistent with exposure to sarin nerve gas." Claire looked at Hobbes. She knew he had recognized the name just by the expression on his face.   
  
The Official noted it also, "Hobbes, what do you know?"  
  
"I know that it was used in the subway terrorist attack in Japan in 1995."  
  
"Right you are, Bobby, sarin is an organophosphate nerve gas. Its odorless and colorless, Darien had no way of knowing what he was walking into. The most concentration of it may have been in the closed room. When Darien opened the door he inhaled it." Claire added.  
  
"How did it get inside that house?" The Official asked angrily.   
  
"Someone got there before us chief and took out the terrorists." Hobbes said.  
  
"Hmpf," the Official grunted, he didn't like his boys walking into death traps, "Yes, Bobby, but the question is who and how did they get that gas into the house?"  
  
"By this," a voice announced.  
  
Hobbes and Claire turned around to see who walked in. "I'm gonna kill you!" Hobbes yelled as he leaped from his chair. His hands wrapped around the neck of the man who walked into the room. "Jones, you rat bastard, you almost killed Fawkes!"  
  
"Bobby!" Claire tried to pry Hobbes hands off of Agent Jones.  
  
"Just let me kill him!" Hobbes yelled.  
  
"Hobbes!" The Official ordered in a gruff tone, "Let go of him, now!"  
  
Hobbes reluctantly let go and sneered at Jones, "You haven't heard the last of this, Jonesy."  
  
Jones fixed his shirt, tie and jacket. He looked at the Official, "Thank you, Mr. Borden."  
  
"Don't mention it, Hobbes will kill you later. But before that, I want some answers."  
  
Jones looked at the Official in surprise; he was about to say something but decided not to. "The doctor here is right, it was a form of sarin nerve gas; however this version worked much faster. It was delivered into the air conditioning unit using this canister," he held up a long oval shape canister with wires and a time release mechanism attached to it.   
  
Claire took it into her hands, "Can I borrow this? I could use it to run some tests."  
  
"Go ahead," Jones responded. "The gas may have been released into the house anywhere from twenty to thirty minutes before Agent Fawkes went inside."  
  
"Didn't you have men on surveillance?" Hobbes asked sarcastically.   
  
"Yes we did, Hobbes," Jones said in a matter-of-fact tone, "They didn't see anybody come near that house."  
  
"Well, someone did." Hobbes answered. Hobbes got up and headed for the door, Jones side stepped to get out of Hobbes way. "If you need me chief, I'll be downstairs checking on my partner."  
  
~*~  
  
No Name leaned on his desk, "Did Agent Fawkes see you?"  
  
"No, he didn't." Marek paused, "So, when do I get to meet the other invisible man?"  
  
"In do time, in do time. Provided of course he survives, which I'm sure he will." No Name smiled and leaned back in his chair. He was pleased with how well his new toy had worked. His ultimate goal is to put the agency out of business and get his hands on Fawkes again. One invisible man is great but two in his charge would make his the most powerful agency in the government. No one would dare cross him knowing that he had two invisible assassins. It wouldn't be too hard to reprogram Fawkes.  
  
~*~  
  
Hobbes sat next to Darien; he listened to the beep that signaled Darien's heart was still beating. Claire had said that Darien had regained consciousness but he was asleep again. He didn't want to wake Darien, so he just patted him on his shoulder, "Hang in there partner, Keepie will have you fixed up in no time."  
  
At that moment Darien's eyes fluttered open. Hobbes smiled at seeing those chocolate colored eyes. Darien had a confused look on his face and Hobbes remembered that Claire had said his vision was still blurry. Hobbes squeezed Darien's hand, remembering also the headache, he spoke softly, "It's me Fawkes, its Hobbes."  
  
Darien tried to speak, but the tube interfered. All that came out was muffled grunts and groans. This clearly irritated Darien and it showed in his face.  
  
"You can't talk, partner. Keep still needs to keep the tube in until your lungs are better. You gave us a scare. But, Claire says you'll be fine, may even be able to go home in a couple of days. I promise I'll find who did this to you."  
  
Darien blinked his eyes and squeezed Hobbes hand again. He turned his head and went back to sleep.  
  
Hobbes got up and walked over to the door. He turned and looked at his partner, "See ya later, Fawkes." The door slid shut.  
  
Lehana Rowe woke up this morning for work she had no idea what she would be getting into. She had been cleared a long time ago for something top secret but she had no idea what it was. Until now.  
  
Lehana thought back to just hours ago. 'He couldn't be that top secret', Lehana's thought was until the man they brought in went into a violent convulsion. As she and the blonde doctor who came in with him tried to sedate him, she felt her hands grow cold. She looked to see were the cold was coming from. It was coming from the man. She stood back and gasped as the man was covered with a silvery liquid like a blanket. At first it trickled all over then coated him. It appeared shiny at first and for a moment she saw her reflection, not to mention the shocked look on her face as she stared back at herself. And as quickly as the silvery substance appeared, it disappeared and so did the man.  
  
Lehana stood there and pointed at the only visible sign that a body was still there on the gurney, an indent in the mattress. "That…that…" She gazed at Claire, "That is…the most incredible thing I ever saw or didn't see!"  
  
"Not now!!! Help me get him stable so he can come back." Claire shouted back.  
  
Now Lehana stood at the side of the bed and checked Darien's vitals. She knew some of the story now, like his name, a quick lesson on the gland and the importance of keeping a secret now that she was involved. She tried to comb his ruffled head of hair after she had recorded his vitals, "Need to make you look at least somewhat presentable. As my Jamaican grandmother would say…'you look like a rag-a-muffin,'". She chuckled at the memory and how many times her grandmother said that to her, even when she graduated med school. Lehana looked at her hair styling skills like an artist looking at a painting or sculpture. "Hmmm…don't have a lot of experience with white man's hair, but this boy's hair just won't lie down. Where is Ultra Sheen when you need it?"  
  
Darien opened his eyes.  
  
"Oh, hello, Agent Fawkes," Lehana looked into the deep brown eyes. It's said that 'the eyes are the window to the soul'. What she saw in his soul was pain and loneliness and not from what he was going through, this was a life time worth of suffering. His face showed confusion. She remembered that he still couldn't see and not to mention that he would not recognize her voice. "Oh…you don't know who I am." Lehana held his hand in hers, "I'm Dr. Lehana Rowe. Your Keeper stepped out, but she'll be back. You just rest now, you had a busy day." She patted his hand with her other one and watched as he closed his eyes.  
  
Lehana sat there for a few moments watching the man sleep. The obvious pain he was in showed in the twitching muscles on his face. She reached over and picked up one of the marked syringes. She swabbed the port on the IV tube and injected some of the pain killer into the line. Lehana followed up the pain medication with a saline solution to wash the line.  
  
~*~  
  
A couple of hours later, Claire sat next to Darien checking his vitals. They were stabilizing and she let out a sigh. She drew some blood, wrote up an order for the lab and handed it to the nurse, "I want the results ASAP." Claire returned her attention back to Darien who was moving around a little. She took hold of his hand, "Dahrien, sweetheart, can you open your eyes for me?"  
  
Darien moved and his brows wrinkled as he tried to open his eyes. Claire coached him on.  
  
"Come on, Darien, you can do it. Let me see those brown eyes." Claire squeezed his hand tighter.  
  
With the tube still in Darien's throat his grunt was barely audible. He stirred some more, clearly agitated. Claire noticed his heart rate going up. "Darien, relax, I know it's hard, but I need to keep the tube in to help you breathe. Don't fight it; just let the machine breathe for you right now." Claire moved her chair closer to the bed, "Just open your eyes for me."  
  
Darien's eyes opened. He tried to talk but to no avail. He became upset and moved around in an agitated way. His hand went down to his groin and he started to pull on the tube.  
  
"Darien, that's the catheter, don't pull on it or you will cause an infection or start bleeding. I know it bothers you but we need to keep it in right now."  
  
Darien glared at Claire.  
  
Claire gave his hand a reassuring squeeze, "It's okay, Darien, just look at me. I'm going to ask you some questions again. Do you remember how to answer them?"  
  
Darien squeezed Claire's hand twice signaling that he remembered.  
  
"Very good, Darien. That's right one squeeze for *No* and two for *Yes*. Do you still have a headache?"  
  
Two squeezes.  
  
"Is it getting better?"  
  
Two squeezes.  
  
"Excellent. That's good, Darien." Claire wrote down his answers in his records. "Now, how about your eyesight, is it still blurry?"  
  
Two squeezes.  
  
"Hmmm. Is that getting better?"  
  
Two squeezes.  
  
"Good." Claire wrote some more, "I'm going to be back in about an hour and we'll see how your lungs are doing. Maybe then I can take that nasty tube out."  
  
Two squeezes.  
  
Claire chuckled, "I thought you would like that." She patted him on his shoulder, "You're on the road to recovery and you'll be your old self again."  
  
Darien half smiled as he turned his head and closed his eyes. Claire sat there for a minutes watching his chest rise and fall as the respirator breathed for him. She looked at the medical equipment around his bed. The numbers flashing his heart rate, pulse and oxygen levels, bags of various solutions attached to IV lines that carried life saving fluids to Darien. X-rays on the view boxes mounted on the walls of his chest and head. Lab reports stuck in the chart she held in her hand.  
  
Claire had been so busy before with tests and determining what had caused this kind of trauma that she never really took the time to gather it all in. They had almost lost Darien. She got up and left the room and cried in the hall.  
  
Lehana walked up carrying a disposable tray filled with cups of coffee she bought at the coffee shop. She spotted Claire, "Hey, what happened?" Lehana had thought the worse.  
  
Claire quickly wiped her eyes, "Oh, no, he's fine. Darien's fine, it's just that," she paused, it was hard to believe what she was going to say, "I almost lost him today."  
  
"Oh, I see," Lehana said in a despondent tone. "So, I take it that you two are seeing each other?"  
  
"What?" Claire looked surprised, "No…I'm sorry if I gave you that impression. I've worked with Darien for two years now and this is the closet I've come to losing any of my co-workers. It just hit that's all." Claire paused and then continued, "Darien is my patient and I'm his doctor but we're also friends. I guess I'm overstressed right now." Claire finished her remark with a nervous laugh.   
  
"Well, I've got just what the doctor ordered and since I am one, here is my order. Go rest." Lehana raised her free hand, "Now don't get all doctor on me by saying, 'I can't, I have a patient to look out for.' You just said yourself that he's fine and he's probably sleeping right now anyway. I can get someone to put a bed for you in another room. You won't do him or me any good if you're on the edge ready to slip off."  
  
Claire smiled, "I promised him that I would check him an hour about taking the tube out. I'll rest after that."  
  
"Okay, fair enough. Until then, here," Lehana handed Claire a cup of coffee. "Now go somewhere and relax for an hour. I'm here; I'll keep an eye on him."  
  
Claire took the coffee and smiled, "Thanks, Lehana, I'm glad you're here."  
  
"Me too. Who knew that working for government would be this exciting?"  
  
The two women laughed. Claire walked down the hall feeling better and Lehana went back inside lab 4. She read the chart to keep herself updated on what went on during her absence. She noted that Claire had ordered some blood workup and that she had spoken with Darien. Lehana read the notes out loud, "Positive responses to headache and blurred vision questioning. Patient communicated by squeezing hand, indicated improvement with the headache and blurred vision." Lehana smiled at Darien, "There you go, see, getting better already."  
  
Lehana checked his vitals and recorded them along with her observations. The door opened and she sighed, "Claire, I thought I told you…" she turned around as she was speaking and stopped, "Oh. Agent Hobbes, I thought you were Claire. Didn't you go home?"  
  
"I did, but I couldn't stay away. Decided to come back here and see how he's doing." Hobbes walked over to Darien and pulled up a chair to sit down.  
  
Lehana smiled, "He's getting better. The headache and the blurred vision are improving and his vitals have stabilized." She held the chart close to her chest, "You did a great job earlier, you acted fast and that probably saved his life."  
  
"It should never have happened." Hobbes pulled out a magazine.  
  
"Agent Hobbes, you of all people should know that every mission is dangerous. No matter how much surveillance you do, there is still the unknown. The important thing is that you were there when it did happen. Imagine how worse you would feel now." Lehana stood in front of Hobbes and stared at him.  
  
Hobbes smiled, "You're pretty good there, doc."  
  
"Well, that's what I'm here for." Lehana saw the magazine and she had puzzled look on her face, "You seem more like the 'Guns and Ammo' type."  
  
"Huh? What?"  
  
"The magazine, 'Philosophy Today', that doesn't fit you."  
  
"Oh, this," Hobbes held up the magazine, "This isn't mine, it's his," Hobbes gestured towards Darien. "I stopped by his apartment before coming back, thought that he would like to hear some of this whacky stuff he's into."  
  
"If we value the pursuit of knowledge, we must be free to follow wherever that search may lead us. The free mind is no barking dog to be tethered on a 1-foot chain."  
  
"Not you too? And what did all that mean anyway?"  
  
"Don't let anything hold you back." Lehana checked the oximetry sensor at the end of Darien's finger.  
  
"Hold back what?" Hobbes asked.  
  
"Whatever it is you're searching for, knowledge, friendship," Lehana paused, "Love."  
  
Hobbes let out a soft grunt, "Humf."  
  
"Agent Hobbes, you can't tell me that there isn't someone out there that holds a special place in your heart?" Lehana wrote down some more notes in Darien's chart as she talked with Hobbes.  
  
"Yeah, well, there is," Hobbes paused, "Someone." Hobbes nearly blushed.  
  
"I see," Lehana smiled. "I thought so."  
  
"Why do you say that?"  
  
"Because, we all need somebody to love, we weren't designed to be alone in life." Lehana checked Darien's temperature and then wrote it down.  
  
"In my line of work, sister, that's risky, especially with this project. It's best if we are alone or not attached to someone." Hobbes poured himself a glass of water.  
  
"Yes, I can see your point. This is pretty top secret," Lehana looked down at Darien, "It must be hard on him."  
  
"More than you know, doc, more than you know." Hobbes opened the magazine to find something to read to Darien.  
  
TBC… 


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2  
  
An hour later, Claire had come back in the room. She saw Bobby as he slept on the chair next to Darien's bed with an opened magazine on his lap. Lehana walked up to Claire, "He came in here to read to Agent Fawkes and then fell asleep."  
  
Claire chuckled and shook her head, "How's Darien doing?"  
  
Lehana handed Claire the chart, "Well, the CBC tests came back normal. His vitals are normal and he's been sleeping although restless at times."  
  
"That's normal for Darien. I'm sure all the tubes are driving him crazy. Let's see if we can remove at least one of them." Claire walked over to Darien to wake him up.  
  
Hobbes stirred when he heard Claire's voice, "Oh hi, Keepie. I must have dozed off. How's Fawkes?"  
  
"I'm going to remove the endotracheal tube." Claire looked at Hobbes, "You may not want to be here. Remember how squeamish you were when Darien first talked about Allianora?"  
  
"You gonna pull that tube out of his mouth?" Hobbes blinked as he tried to wake up.  
  
"Yeesss," Claire drew out her answer.  
  
"I'm gone; call me when it's over." Hobbes bolted from the chair and walked out.  
  
Claire flashed Lehana a smile as they heard the door close. She bent down and lightly touched Darien's shoulder, "Darien, wake up for me." She watched as Darien moved with some agitation and then his eyes opened. "Your lungs are doing much better and I believe that you can breathe on your own now, so we're going to take the tube out," Claire was rubbing his arm gently as she spoke.  
  
Darien lay there not sure what to make of all this. He was unconscious when the tube was placed and now he was awake. His vision was blurry but he did recognize Claire's voice. His face showed concerned.   
  
"Now Darien, this is going to feel rather strange at first. You won't be able to talk clearly for awhile but your voice will return. I have a nice cup of ice chips waiting for you, okay?"   
  
Darien nodded. He was still worried about what was going to happen. He watched as Claire injected medication into the port of the IV, "This is a sedative, Darien. It'll help you to relax."  
  
Claire motioned to Lehana who was standing on the other side of Darien. She took his hand, "We're going to roll you over on your side."  
  
Darien thought to himself, 'She woke me up to tell me she's giving me a sedative. So typical.' Darien was rolled over. His mouth was suctioned as Claire waited for the sedative to take effect.  
  
Hobbes waited outside the room, pacing back and forth like an expectant father. The thoughts of the events earlier in the day came back to haunt him. No wonder he couldn't rest at home. The visions of Darien's lifeless eyes staring up at him as he pushed air into the empty lungs kept him from relaxing. He had to be near his partner to protect him, which was something he felt he didn't do a very job of and Fawkes was in this condition because of him.   
  
After a few moments, Claire opened the door. Hobbes quickly stood in front of her, "How is he? Can I see him?"  
  
Claire smiled, "Yes, he's fine and you can see him."  
  
Hobbes was at Darien's side in heart beat. Darien was sitting up a little and Lehana was feeding him ice chips. Hobbes looked at Lehana and then at the cup in her hand, "Can I?"  
  
Lehana smiled, "Of course, Agent Hobbes." She handed Hobbes the cup and smiled.   
  
Hobbes happily took the cup and put the spoon in to scoop up some ice, "How ya doin', partner?"  
  
"Okay, I'd feel much better if they take this tube out of my…" Darien said hoarsely before he was cut off by Hobbes sticking another spoon full of ice in his mouth. His throat hurt and the ice was soothing.  
  
"Fawkes…there are ladies present," Hobbes flinched just thinking about it. "Try not to talk so much, Claire said it will take a while before you can shoot off that wise-cracking mouth or yours," Hobbes smiled as he fed Darien another spoon full of ice. "Lucky for us, huh? We get to enjoy some peace and quiet for a change."  
  
Darien smiled as he let the ice melt down the back of his throat.  
  
Lehana and Claire watched them for a moment. Lehana broke the silence, "Now, Dr. Keeply, get some rest." She paused and then continued, "Doctor's orders!"  
  
Claire smiled and patted Lehana on the back, "I will." Claire left the lab to go lie down and get some much needed rest.  
  
Hobbes continued to talk to Darien, "You know, kid, I think the doc over there has something for ya," he said softly.  
  
Darien had a puzzled look on his face.  
  
"That's right my friend, Bobby Hobbes knows the look that chicks get when they're interested." Hobbes touched Darien's lips with the spoon to let him know that he had some more ice, "I know your vision is all wacko right now, but I can see it, and she's interested in you Gilligan."  
  
Lehana had heard what Hobbes said. She turned and started to walks towards Darien with a thermometer in her hand. She tried to stay focused on her job. 'I couldn't like this dude....he's okay...I know of him, but I don't know him…nah, this is crazy…but those eyes…' she thought to herself.   
  
"So Darien, am I hot?"   
  
Darien tilted his head and looked in the direction that he knew where Hobbes stood.  Hobbes raised his eyebrow and looked at Lehana.   
  
Lehana realized what she just said. Embarrassed, she tried to back peddle, "Oh…ah…sorry...I mean, you are hot...ah..."   
  
Darien's eyes widen.  Hobbes smiled and fluttered his eyebrows.  
  
"Ah man, I mean, do you feel hot...I need to check your temperature," she held up the theromater strip to put in Darien's mouth.  
  
Darien smirked in a hoarse voice, "I feel hot now."   
  
Lehana forced a smile to hide her awkwardness. She placed the strip in Darien's mouth. While she waited for that, she checked his other vitals. She wrote down the results on the chart and then took the strip from Darien's mouth, "Very good, no fever." She took her stethoscope to listen to Darien's lungs. "Okay, Darien, take a deep breath in as best you can and then let it out. It may hurt a bit."  
  
Darien did as he was told and it did hurt. His lungs were not used to breathing on their own yet. He winced at the pain.  
  
"I'm sorry, Darien." Lehana listened to his lungs fill with air then release. "Do that again," she hated asking him to go through the discomfort again but she had to check his lungs thoroughly.  
  
To Darien, it felt like someone was stabbing the inside of his lungs. He hoped that this wouldn't take long and now he didn't look forward to physical therapy.  
  
Lehana asked him a few more times to breath in deep and let it out. She smiled and put the stethoscope around her neck. With a gentle hand, she patted Darien on his shoulder, "Very good, Darien, I know it hurt, but you did great. Your lungs sound clear. We're going to keep you in here for a couple of days so I can check you out...ah…oh…"  
  
Hobbes choked as he tried to keep from laughing. Lehana looked at him with concern, "Are you okay, need some water?"  
  
Hobbes put his hand up and shook his head, "No…no…I just… *cough*… swallowed wrong…*cough*…" he put his hand to his mouth.   
  
"What I meant to say was so we can keep an eye on you."  
  
Darien shot Lehana the 'oh swell' look. She smiled, "We'll have you up and around soon, so you won't have to lie down here the whole time. It'll be easier for you to move around once we get the catheter out."  
  
"You gonna take it out doc?" Hobbes asked.  
  
Hobbes smiled and kept a snicker from escaping his lips. Darien blushed and then he glared at Hobbes.  
  
  
  
Lehana smiled, "Darien, I'm a physician, there isn't anything that you have that I haven't seen before. Well, apart from the gland in your head." She left Darien's side to go over to the table and look at the recent x-rays on the viewer. Her back was to the men and she closed her eyes as if in concentration. 'It's a good thing I'm black or else they would have seen me blush,' she thought to herself.  
  
She sat down and became lost in thought. 'I can't be developing feelings for him. Girl, you read his file, he's a thief…ex-thief ...no matter…once a thief, always a thief…now that's not fair, you can't judge him that way…true…he has been through a lot though…like you…yeah…and look at you now…a black woman who became a doctor and is now working on a top secret government project…not too bad for a sista…you got that right…who is now attracted to a white man…and what's wrong with that girlfriend…who says you can't find love in another color,' Lehana let out a sigh and turned to look at Darien.  
  
Hobbes and Darien were engrossed in a conversation with Hobbes obviously doing most of the talking. Darien would nod his head and smile every now and then.   
  
"This is going to be a long couple of days," she said softly. 'I wonder if it matters to him that I'm black?' she thought to herself.  
  
The following day, Lehana walked in and saw Darien sitting up in bed watching TV. She smiled, "So, they finally brought one in for you I see."  
  
"Yeah, well, I'm the King of Complainers," Darien watched her as she picked up his chart and started to read. 'Wow, she looks like Vivica A. Fox…wonder if she did that on purpose? A fox…' Darien thought to himself as he stared at her. Actually he didn't even realize he was doing it. His eyesight had improved dramatically and now he could see her well enough and he couldn't keep his eyes off of her.   
  
Lehana felt uncomfortable and she decided to just be oblivious to Darien's stare, "Anything you want to ask me, Darien?"  
  
"Uhmm…no, other than when is the…you know…going to come out?" Darien had his hands folded in his lap as he tried to hide his awkwardness.   
  
"Well, I'll talk to Claire and maybe we can take it out today, maybe even this morning," Lehana approached him to check his vitals and the catheter, but she wasn't about to let him know that.  
  
"Whose the 'we', I mean, how many people do you need to take it out?" Darien blushed.  
  
Lehana smiled as she waited for the pulse and blood pressure results, "Just one actually."  
  
"Oh so do you all like draw straws or something?" Darien watched her movements carefully.   
  
Lehana smiled, "No, actually one of the nurses takes it out." She took his temperature and that was fine, now for the catheter. She pulled the curtain to give Darien some privacy and put on gloves.  
  
"Whoa, okay, what are you going to do now?" Darien asked nervously.  
  
"I need to check the catheter, Darien."  
  
"Ah, I don't think so," Darien grabbed the sheets and held on tight.  
  
Lehana gave Darien a stern look, "Look, I told you yesterday that there isn't any part of you that I haven't seen already."  
  
Darien sighed defeated. He let go of the sheet. He closed his eyes and tried to think of something else and keep his heart rate down. Then he heard the words he hoped to hear.   
  
"All done," Lehana fixed the sheets and took her gloves off, "That wasn't so bad was it?"  
  
"I'm not even going to answer that," Darien smirked.   
  
Lehana forced a smile, "I'll be in the next room if you need anything, the buzzer is next to you." She checked her watch, "Claire should be in any moment now so you just relax and get some rest." Darien nodded and went right back to watching TV.   
  
By the afternoon all the tubes had been removed. Darien was free to move around and was happy to be able to sit in the chair instead of being in the bed all the time. Claire walked in the lab and saw him reading.  
  
"Glad to see you up and about," she smiled at him.  
  
Darien looked up from his book, "Oh hey, Keep, yeah, I can see clearly now." Darien chuckled.   
  
"And I see that you've regained your sense of humor." Claire approached Darien, "I'm glad that you made such a quick recovery."  
  
Darien put his book on his lap, "Hobbes said that it was some poison gas that I breathed?"  
  
"Yes, it was a poison gas similar to Sarin. Lucky for you though, by the time you went into the house it had already started to dissipate."  
  
"Hmm…lucky me." Darien leaned his head back on the chair.  
  
"Yeah, if you had gone into that house sooner, I don't think I would have been able to save you," Claire gave Darien a reassuring smile.  
  
"Is that what killed those terrorists?"  
  
"Yes, they inhaled the full brunt of the poison gas. They were knocked out before they knew what happened," Claire said as she started to take Darien's vitals.  
  
"Were the terrorists planning on releasing this gas and they had an accident?" Darien asked.  
  
"No, we found a canister connected to the air conditioning unit outside the house," Claire took his pulse.  
  
"So, they were murdered, taken out." Darien looked straight ahead. He turned back to Claire, "Who would want to take out a group of terrorist with poison gas?"  
  
"I don't know, Darien." Claire wrote in her chart.  
  
"Doesn't make sense," Darien said. After a few moments of silence, Darien spoke again, "Hey, uh…now that I'm feeling better, is Dr. Rowe still going to be around?"  
  
Claire looked at Darien suspiciously, "Why do you ask?" Claire questioned as she put the blood pressure cuff around Darien's arm.  
  
"Oh, I just wanted to thank her, you know…for helping." Darien watched as Claire inflated the cuff and took his pressure.  
  
Claire took the stethoscope off and wrapped it around her neck. She smiled at Darien, "Dr. Rowe will be back later on this evening." Claire made some more notations and held the chart against her body, "You're progressing well, Darien. I may even let you go home in 48 hours, with someone with you of course. But all that depends on how well you cooperate with physical therapy."  
  
Darien rolled his eyes, "I'll behave."  
  
Claire raised a brow at Darien's comment.   
  
Darien saw the look he got from Claire and gave her his puppy look, "I promise."  
  
"Uh-huh…well, we'll see about that." Claire had started to walk away and then turned around, "Do you need anything? Something to eat or drink?"  
  
Darien sat up excitedly at the mention of food, "Oh hey, yeah, as a matter of fact I could use something to eat."  
  
Claire smiled, "I see that the way to a man's heart is through his stomach. I'll see what I can do." Claire opened the door to be greeted by the Official and Eberts standing behind him.  
  
"How's he doing?"  
  
Claire looked at the Official then at Darien as she answered, "Why don't you ask him yourself."  
  
The Official walked in and saw Darien sitting up and out of bed. He showed genuine gratification when he saw Darien, it also showed in his voice, "I'm glad to see you're feeling better."   
  
Darien noted the tone and smiled.  
  
The Official turned towards Claire, "How's the gland?"  
  
Darien rolled his eyes, "One brief shinning moment and then that gland."  
  
The Official turned around and glared at Darien, "What did you say?"  
  
"Oh my bad, did I say that out loud?" Darien sarcastically said and stuck his head back in the book he was reading.  
  
The Official huffed and looked at Claire, "Well."  
  
Claire glanced at Darien and then glared at the Official, "As far as I can tell the gland is fine. The nerve gas is out of *Darien's* system," Claire punctuated his name and continued; "he should have no side effects and will be able to go home in a couple of days once all my tests are complete."  
  
"Very well, Claire, good job to you and your team," The Official turned to walk out. As he headed out the door, he called back to Darien, "Welcome back, Darien."  
  
"Yeah, yeah," Darien mumbled under his breath.   
  
Claire walked over to him, "I know that he's glad that you're okay."  
  
"Whatever, I'll never be more than a receptacle to him. The only reason why I got this thing put in my head was because of what happened to Simon Cole." Darien hissed.  
  
"Now you know that's not true, it was Kevin." Claire looked solemnly down at Darien.   
  
Darien shook his head, "Nah, Kevin may have had pull, but not that much. I mean, think about it Claire, you know what happened to Simon when the gland was in him. Would you have risked that again in another agent like him?"  
  
Claire didn't answer; she only glanced away so she wouldn't have to look in his eyes.  
  
"See, even you would have doubts. So, what better person than someone who doesn't contribute to society in a positive way at all, what's another thief sentenced to life in prison? Put the gland in him and if he goes wacko, we harvest the gland, no one would miss him, end of story."  
  
"Darien, you can't believe that Kevin would think of you in that way?"  
  
"You didn't know him, Claire. I don't see or hear from him in two years and then all of a sudden he pops up," Darien stared off, not looking at anything in particular, "I really don't want to talk about this now." Darien got up, got in bed and rolled over to turn his back on Claire.  
  
Claire sighed, "Do you still want something to eat?"  
  
"Nah, not hungry anymore, I just want to be alone."  
  
Claire didn't say anything, she couldn't say anything. She turned around and walked out.   
  
Darien was nearly asleep again when he heard the familiar sound of the door sliding open. "Claire, I thought I told you I wanted to be alone," he said in a disgusted tone.  
  
"I'm sorry," Lehana said.  
  
Darien quickly rolled back over. He had seen Lehana for the first time the day before, but today she looked different. He stared at her for a few seconds and shook himself out of the trance, "No, I'm sorry. I thought you were Claire. I thought you weren't coming back until later?"  
  
Lehana walked slowly over to Darien, "Well, I was but decided to come back earlier. But I take it I missed something?"  
  
"Yeah, typical Fat Man crap," Darien sighed.  
  
"Fat Man crap?" Lehana asked.  
  
Darien partly smiled, "The Official, he was in here. At first he sounded concerned about me and then went right back into his 'all I care about is the gland' mode."  
  
Lehana sat down on the bed next to Darien, "Sounds like you need someone to talk to who's on the outside of this."  
  
Darien looked around the room as he thought about Lehana. His memories went back to all those that were killed because they got to close to the gland, he couldn't risk that with Lehana, "I wish I could, but people seemed to get killed when they get to know the gland."  
  
"I don't want to get to talk to the gland, I want to talk to you," Lehana smiled.  
  
Darien cocked his head to one side and looked at her.  
  
"What?" Lehana said with a slight chuckle in her voice.  
  
"You have a nice smile." Darien rolled his eyes, "That was a corny pick-up line."  
  
Lehana looked down at the sheets then met Darien's expression that showed embarrassment, "No, it was a compliment and did you mean it to be a pick-up line?"  
  
Darien smiled, "Well, yeah, I was hoping it would have come out better than that. I haven't had much practice in the pick-up line department lately."  
  
Lehana smiled widely, "Ah...so you don't mind having a little chocolate in your milk?" She winked at Darien.  
  
"As long as you don't mind a little cream in your coffee?" Darien grinned mischievously.   
  
"We would make 'light mocha'...my favorite flavor." Lehana raised an eyebrow and smiled.  
  
"....a Mochaccino."   
  
"....Colada..."  
  
"....Kahlua..."  
  
".....A Black Russian..."  
  
Darien shook his head, "Nah....that drink is too bitter. We're sweeter than that."  
  
"True....true…"  
  
"I was hoping that me being white wouldn't be a problem," Darien's tone hinted that he was nervous.  
  
"Darien, you're tanned, Larry Bird is white," Lehana joked.   
  
"According to Bill Murray, he's clear."  
  
Lehana laughed thinking back to that scene in 'Space Jam'. Darien took her hand, "I had wanted to ask you earlier but I never had the chance too. I mean, well, let's not relive that experience," Darien blushed. It was Lehana who ended up taking out the catheter. "I do want to take you out to dinner, you know, a 'thank you' for saving my life."  
  
"Is that all, just a 'thank you' or is it something more?"  
  
"I mean, I hope it could be something more. And you're right; I do need someone outside to talk to. I know this is sudden, but at least let me take you out to dinner." Darien gave her his infamous puppy-in-the-store-window look.  
  
"Now, how can I resist you when you look at me like that? Besides, it's not sudden. I would love to go out with you. But first, I have to take some vitals. It's been a couple of hours and we need to have an update." Lehana got up to get his chart when she felt the grip on her hand tighten.  
  
She looked at her hand and then looked at Darien. Lehana felt herself being pulled towards him, she didn't fight him. She allowed him to pull her down until they were merely inches apart. "Darien?"  
  
"Shhh," Darien whispered as his hand went to the back of her head. He leaned up and their lips lightly touched. He backed away to see what her response would be. She didn't back away; she parted her lips slightly and gazed into his eyes. Darien met her lips again with his and this time the kiss had more passion in it.  
  
When they finally broke the kiss for air, both were panting. "Darien, your hand is cold," Lehana said.  
  
Darien took his hand quickly, "Aw crap, aw crap." Darien's entire arm disappeared and then part of his chest. "Damn gland."  
  
"What's wrong? Is it the sarin gas? I better call Claire," Lehana said in a panic tone and got up from the bed to call Claire.  
  
"No, no, no…it's just the gland. It does this when I…uhm…get…well…"  
  
Lehana's face turned from fear to realization, "Oh…OH!"  
  
"Yeah," Darien said embarrassed.  
  
"But we were just kissing," Lehana said surprised that Darien would react in that way from a simple kiss.  
  
"Yeah, well, I don't get out much, ya' know what I mean?" Darien's arm and chest reappeared in a burst of silver flakes.  
  
"How interesting?"   
  
Darien did a double take, "What, you find that I don't get out much interesting?"  
  
"Oh, no, I mean interesting that the gland reacts with your adrenaline even with *that*."  
  
"*That* meaning sex?"  
  
Now it was Lehana's turn to be embarrassed, she scratched the back of her head, "Well, yeah."  
  
"It is what it is, unfortunately." Darien's tone sounded dismayed.  
  
"Hey, it's all good. I mean, you got turned on by kissing me, what girl wouldn't want that?"  
  
Darien half smiled, "I'm glad you see it that way."  
  
"Uhm…I better check your vitals." Lehana reached for the chart and took the stethoscope off from around her neck. She began to check Darien's vitals. It was difficult for her to concentrate; she kept looking into his eyes. There was definitely something going on between them.  
  
Hobbes walked in with coffee cups in his hands, "Hey there, partner, thought you might like some coffee." He noticed Lehana, "Oh, hi doc, how's I-Man doin'?"  
  
"He's going to be fine, no signs of any side affects so far. Cat scans are showing nothing out of the ordinary," Lehana smiled.  
  
"So, what you're sayin' is he's got nothin' up there in the ol' noggin?"  
  
"Very funny," Darien said sarcastically.   
  
Hobbes walked over and handed Darien some coffee, "I've been checking Hobbesnet on what happened the yesterday," he took the cover off of his coffee and took a sip.  
  
"And?" Darien asked.  
  
"Nothin'."  
  
"Hmmm, now why doesn't that surprise me?" Darien took a sip of his coffee.  
  
"Don't worry, I'll find out who did this to you. Bobby Hobbes won't rest until all stones are turned over, my friend." Hobbes sounded confident.  
  
~*~  
  
A couple of days later Darien was able to go home. Lehana and Claire both took turns in checking up on him. They would stay for a couple of hours and sometimes Hobbes and Alex stopped by, but not for long, they were both working on leads.  
  
Darien slept most of the time; the two doctors rarely gave him time to rest while he was at the Agency. Every now and then he managed to get out of bed for awhile and do his rehab exercises when the physical therapist showed up. Soon he would be back on duty, but for now, he was given the go ahead to leave his apartment. Which meant he was about to go on his big dinner date with Lehana.  
  
Hobbes decided to pay his tall friend a visit and see how he was managing. He knocked on the door and heard some swearing. His forehead furrowed at the sounds he heard, "Geesh, Fawkes, cursing like a sailor isn't gonna get you far. You need some serious help, my friend." Hobbes raised his voice a little, "Easy there big guy, it's just me."  
  
Hobbes heard Darien unlock his door. "Okay, come in!" Darien sounded a little anxious.  
  
He walked in his partner's apartment and gazed around at the mess. Clothes were scattered everywhere. "What's the matter, cleaning lady forgot to come by?"  
  
Darien stood there wearing only a towel and looked flustered. Hobbes took in the sight before him, "What? You two planning on going to the nude beach or something?"  
  
Darien put his hands on his hips, "For your information, I'm taking her to Emerald's Chinese Restaurant."  
  
"Not dressed like that you aren't," Hobbes went over to Darien's refrigerator and pulled out a beer. He popped it open and sat down at the small bar. He watched Darien rummage through his closet, clothes flew out as he went. Hobbes took a sip and then took pity on Darien, "Need help there my no fashion sense friend?"  
  
Darien's head peeked out from his closet with an annoyed look on his face, "I've got fashion sense."  
  
"Yeah, sure you do Mr. Barfly," Hobbes got up from stool and strolled over to Darien's closet. He took a peek inside, "Whoa…this is all you got?"  
  
Darien rolled his eyes, "Come on man, give me some slack here. I like my clothes."  
  
"Yeah, and so does Goodwill." Hobbes shifted through some clothes, "Look you want to date her, not scare the livin' crap of her."   
  
Darien folded his arms and watched Hobbes. Suddenly a pair of black jeans hit him in the face. "Here these are nice…oh and so is this," he tossed Darien a nice white sweater. "Now for some shoes…ah…hello…" Hobbes held up some black boots, "Now we're talking…how come you don't wear these?"  
  
"I like the shoes I wear," Darien retorted.  
  
"Now to complete the ensemble, wear your black leather jacket." Hobbes nudged Darien with his elbow and then shot him a wink.  
  
Darien went into the bathroom for a few minutes and came out all dressed. Hobbes whistled, "You're gonna knock her dead, kid."  
  
Darien pulled out a comb. Hobbes smiled, "Whoa....she must be special if you're pullin' out the comb."  
  
Darien smiles, "Okay...so I have a few more things to do..."  
  
"Like shave and then what?"  
  
"...check and make sure I'm lookin' cute for her..."  
  
"Ah-huh...."  
  
"....check and make sure I'm packin' loot for her..."  
  
"For what..."  
  
"...cause I'm about to shut down the bar for her…"  
  
"Oh...very smooth...and..."  
  
"...open up the car door for her..."  
  
Bobby gave Darien a low-five.   
  
TBC… 


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3  
  
Lehana drove to Darien's apartment. When she parked the car she went through her check list. "Okay, hair-do lookin' hot," she ran her finger under her lips to straighten out her lipstick, "Mmm…you're lookin' fine girl." She got out of her car and went up to the front door. Darien had given her the code to enter his building. She shook her head, "Thief who lives in a building with security like this…ain't that a blip…ex-thief…I must remember that." She entered the building and headed upstairs.  
  
Hobbes and Darien heard the knock at the door. They both looked at each other in fear. "Oh crap, that's her!" Darien exclaimed looking at the mess he made.  
  
"Well, just don't stand there mutton head, get to stuffin' these rags of yours back in the closet." Hobbes bent down and started to toss clothes back into the closet. Darien joined him in the frantic clean-up. Clothes were tossed about in the air to land in the closet. Both Hobbes and Darien pushed his clothes into the closet like a couple of bulldozers. They started to laugh. "I feel like Jim Carrey in The Mask," Hobbes retorted.  
  
"God, Hobbes, I can't keep her waiting."  
  
Lehana stood outside the door and knocked again, "Ahh…Darien? It's me Lehana."  
  
Inside the apartment Darien and Hobbes were frantically still tying to clean up. "Ah…yeah, I'll be right there." Darien tried not to show his anxiety in his tone.  
  
"Fawkes, you don't keep a lady waitin, where's your manners?" Hobbes hit Darien on the side of his head.  
  
"Hey, watch the do, man! Besides, I just said that I can't keep her waiting!" Darien blurted out loud enough for the neighbors to hear.  
  
Lehana started to giggle. She shook her head as a huge smile adorned her face. "This date is gonna be interesting to say the least."  
  
Darien managed to get the door closed. Hobbes straightened out his own appearance as Darien attended to his own unruly appearance. Hobbes sat down at the bar and Darien stood at the door. He glanced back at Hobbes and took a deep breath. He opened the door and his mouth dropped open. "Hi, Lehana…whoa…you look so different with clothes on…"  
  
Hobbes tried his best to keep his burst of laughter inside. He turned his head away and rolled his eyes. "Not smooth, Fawkes," he said as he coughed to hide his laughter.   
  
Lehana stared at him with a smile on her face. Her eyes widened, "Well, I…"  
  
Darien realized what he said and he immediately turned red, "Oh my bad, I ah…mean that you know, I saw you in scrubs and a lab coat all the time."  
  
"Fawkes, let the lady in," Hobbes said as he stood to properly greet Lehana.  
  
Darien moved aside and let Lehana in. She took in the sight of the small apartment. It was definitely a bachelor's pad. She smiled when she saw Hobbes. They hugged, "How you doin', Hobbes?"  
  
"I'm fine." He looked at his partner, "Now I want her home by 11:00 young man or else I'm gonna come lookin' for ya." Hobbes patted his side arm, "Understand?"  
  
Darien and Lehana smiled. "Yeah, I get it," Darien grabbed his jacket, "Lock up for me okay, Hobbes?"  
  
"Sure thing, kid. Have fun you two." Hobbes watched as the couple left. He sat back down at the bar and let out sigh. "You deserve someone, so don't screw it up."  
  
The restaurant was decorated with fine Chinese pottery and decorations. Chinese style lamps hung around the restaurant and were dimly lit giving the dining area a romantic atmosphere. Pretty landscape paintings of China adorned the walls as well as other Chinese art and writings. The restaurant was definitely elegant and comfortable with soft music playing over the speakers.  
  
Lehana and Darien were seated at their table and their drink orders were taken by the waitress. His eyes darted around fretfully and it wasn't that he wanted to take in the scenery or was afraid that the Chinese would kidnap him again. He had been quiet in the car on the way over to the restaurant. Lehana knew he was nervous and tried to break the ice. "Are you alright, Darien?"  
  
Darien tugged at the collar on his sweater, "Yeah...just a little nervous."  
  
"Of me?"  
  
"Yeah..." He laughed nervously. "I haven't had a real date in a long time and well, I'm a little rusty."  
  
"Hmmm....you would think this would be easy, after all I did put that catheter..."  
  
"DON'T SAY IT!" Darien buried his face in his hands, "That was more than what I needed to know."  
  
Lehana shrugged her shoulders and smiled, "Sorry, but I am a doctor and when you've seen one…"  
  
"Okay, can we move this conversation right along please," Darien said.  
  
"Maybe this will help," Lehana removed her jacket.  
  
"That works for me."  Darien took in Lehana's beautiful figure that had been hidden under her lab coat and scrubs.   
  
Lehana smiled, "Oh...thanks...but not that."  She pulled out a gift-wrapped package and handed it to Darien.   
  
  
  
Darien looked at the package and back at Lehana, "What's this?"  
  
"B told me you were into quotes."  
  
"B?"  Darien asked with creased brows.  
  
"Oh...Bobby...He told me about that large book of 'Philosophy's Greatest Hits' you have. I found this abbreviated version in the bookstore. I thought that whenever you felt the need for inspiration that it should be at your fingertips."  
  
Darien is touched and it shows on his face. He opened the package and thumbed through the quotes. "Thanks."  
  
"Sure." Now it was Lehana's turn to blush.   
  
  
  
Darien placed the book in the inside pocket of his jacket.  He rubbed his hand through his hair, "So....ah....what's shakin'?"   
  
"Besides your hands?"  
  
Darien looked at his hands and rubbed them together.   
  
"You really are nervous." Lehana covered his hands with hers. "You feel cold, are you okay?"   
  
"Oh crap...not now." Darien started to panic.  
  
"Don't tell me." Lehana glanced around the crowded restaurant nervously.   
  
"Yep..."   
  
"But we haven't done anything yet," Lehana said.  
  
"Done...forget the done, I have an imagination, it's all in my mind...ah...that didn't sound right." Darien looked as if he wanted to bolt from the restaurant.   
  
Darien's fingers started to coat with quicksilver. Lehana grabbed her napkin and covered Darien's hands. The waitress came back to the table with their drinks. She eyed them suspiciously.   
  
Lehana smiled at the waitress, "He's showing me a magic trick."  
  
  
  
The waitress shrugged and walked away. She had seen all kinds of weird things that people do and this was no different.  
  
Lehana focused back on Darien. She felt his hands getting colder and she knew eventually it will show through the napkin. She had to refocus his thoughts.  
  
"So, Darien, wouldn't Eberts and Claire make a wonderful couple?" Lehana smiled.  
  
"WHAT?"  
  
"I can see them walking on the beach, hand in hand..."  
  
"Whoa, hold on there, Ebes and the Keep? No way!"  
  
"Why not? I'm sure Eberts would look great in a speedo."  
  
Darien closed his eyes and tried to shake off the image of Eberts in a speedo. Lehana felt Darien's hands suddenly become warmer. She patted his hands and removed the napkin. "See....I knew that would do it."  
  
Darien looked at his hands, "Yeah, thanks, but now I can't get the thought of a speedo-wearin' Eberts out of my head."  
  
~*~  
  
Hobbes had returned to his apartment. He plopped down in front of his computer and started going over any leads that he and Alex had gathered. He had called Alex to help him with the investigation. Alex had been sincerely worried over what had happened to Darien. She may not have always shown it but deep down inside, she did care for Darien. He had changed dramatically and once she understood the hardships he had gone through she realized that she had no right to judge him. So, it was no problem for her to check on her contacts as well, after all, Darien was a colleague and one that needed her help.  
  
Hobbes rubbed his eyes. He had gone over the information so many times that they all started to blend in together. He spotted the surveillance tape and decided to watch that one again.   
  
He walked over to his tape machine and pushed the tape in. He sat down on the couch and held the remote control in his hands, "Okay, let's see what we've got here…again."  
  
~*~  
  
Darien stared into his after dinner drink, "I really miss my brother, he said he cared about me even though he had a strange way of showing it. Some say that he did care, though I have to admit I doubt it."   
  
"But you have someone who does cares for you now, like 'B'?"  
  
Darien looked up, "Ah…'B' as in buzz or 'B' as in boring?"  
  
"Try 'B' as in Bobby."   
  
"Oh...right...sorry. I have to get used to your nicknames. You're right. Bobby has become like a brother to me. At first, I wanted a new partner, but now I wouldn't want anyone else but him. I trust him. I guess I care about him too…in a brother kind of way."   
  
"Ah huh...and he's the kind of brother that would follow you on a first date?"   
  
"What?"   
  
Lehana nodded to Darien to look over his shoulder. Darien turned around just in time to see Hobbes rushing up to their table.   
  
"Hey partner, Lehana, sorry to bust in on ya." Hobbes pulled up a chair.   
  
"Hobbes..." Darien said in a very irritated tone.  
  
"...and I know what you're going to say, you're a big boy now and can go on your dates and all, but I was thinkin'..."   
  
"...oh...now we're in trouble..." Darien rolled his eyes.   
  
"Okay, smart ass…for your information I was going over the intell on the investigation that Monroe and I have been workin' very hard on, my friend. I think you're in danger."  
  
"Oh...so because of the fact that I'm always in danger you felt it necessary..."   
  
"...imperative..." Hobbes nodded.   
  
"...to come all the way out here..."  
  
"...it's only a couple of blocks, c'mon…"   
  
"...and tell me this crap now."  
  
"Yep. You're my partner and I'm supposed to protect you."   
  
Darien looked at Lehana and shrugged. Lehana smiled, "That's a brother alright." Lehana winked at Hobbes. Hobbes flashed her a smile. "So, B, is D really in danger?" Lehana asked with concern.   
  
Darien folded his arms, "Oh...so now I'm reduced to a single letter too."  
  
Lehana chuckled, "Sorry Darien, I like nicknames. Bobby knows that already."   
  
"You got that right." Hobbes said smugly.   
  
Darien looked at Hobbes and then back to Lehana, "So, let me guess, your nickname is 'L'?"  
  
"No, just Lee," Hobbes answered.  
  
"Okay, and how do you know that 'B'?" Darien asked sarcastically.   
  
"Well when you were out with the gas and all, the doc and I had lots of downtime, so we talked."   
  
"That's just great. Wonder what else you two talked about."  
  
"Nothing personal, Darien, so don't worry," Lehana held Darien's hand in hers, "It's all good."  
  
Darien smiled. He looked at Hobbes, "Okay, so what did you find?"  
  
"I can't talk about it here, but I will tell ya this, you won't like it," Hobbes said ominously.   
  
"I never do." Darien retorted as he took a long sip of his drink.  
  
The three of them never noticed the door open and then shut without no one ever entering or leaving the restaurant.  
  
~*~  
  
Lehana dropped Darien off in front of his apartment after Hobbes told them his suspicions. He didn't know exactly who was behind the gas that nearly killed Darien, but he was close to finding the truth. He had called the Official and he ordered a surveillance team to watch Darien's every move until further notice.   
  
She walked up to the front door with him. He took her hands in hers, "Despite Hobbes crashing our date and his grim reaper news of danger, I had a great time."  
  
"I had a great time too." She ran a finger through the curling hair on the left side of his face.   
  
"Uhmm…can I see you again?" Darien looked deep into her brown eyes.  
  
"Yes, I would love that. And next time, lets not tell Hobbes where we're going," she snickered.  
  
"Don't worry, I won't." Darien smiled. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her in closer to him. Her arms went around his neck and the two of them just stared into each other's eyes. Their faces were getting closer slowly, their lips parted in anticipation of the kiss that was coming. Their eyes kept contact as their lips met. Lehana closed her eyes and sank into his warm embrace. They separated quickly and glanced at each other with neither of them saying a word. They didn't have to. The message was coming through loud and clear. They were falling in love. Darien cupped her face in his hands and smiled, his hands a contrast to the color of her skin. He pulled her in close again and kissed her deeply.  
  
He felt the quicksilver start to trickle down his chest. "Oh crap!" Darien turned around frantically trying to find a place to hide. Lehana watched him and then realized what was happening, "Oh...I'm sorry." She felt helpless as part of his chest disappeared.  
  
Darien looked around nervously and covered his chest with his jacket, "I ah…think I should go upstairs." He quickly pressed the code and dashed inside before any more parts of him disappeared. Lehana smiled as she watched the door closed, "Poor guy, he needs to get out more." She got back in her car and drove home. Neither of them knew that down the street a black hummer had parked. Inside, a man had watched them closely.   
  
Darien rushed into his apartment and dashed into his bathroom, taking his clothes off as he went. He turned on the shower and stepped under the cold stream. He let the water cascade down his body. His head rested against the wall, "Man, you've got it bad."  
  
After a few moments, he stepped from the shower and wrapped a towel around him. He walked out into his living room and got ready for bed. Dressed in only a pair of stripped pajama pants he looked out his window and stood there for a few moments. If Hobbes knew that he was standing in the window looking out, he would have killed him himself. "Talk about your open target", Darien mused to himself.   
  
Across the street he spotted the Agency issue car with two agents inside who were visibly griping about something. Darien figured it had to do with them having to baby sit the Agency's secret weapon. He shook his head and chuckled, "The great Agency safety net." He closed his shade and hopped into bed. He stared up at the ceiling thinking about Lehana. He could definitely get used to seeing her more often. He just wished Claire could do something about that gland. He didn't know when he fell asleep but when he did he had Lehana on his mind. For the first time since getting the gland, he had no nightmares.  
  
~*~  
  
The following morning, the Agency's halls were eerily quiet all of a sudden. The hustle and bustle of busy agents came to a halt. Papers were strewn across the floors and agents were sprawled out on the floor. There was no sign of a struggle anywhere, it just seemed like the agents were walking down the hall and just dropped. Inside the Keep lay Claire on the floor, even her animals were out cold.   
  
The Official's office was not immune to the catastrophe that was currently plaguing the Agency. Darien was flat out on the floor lying on his stomach; Hobbes hung over the side of his chair. Eberts lay in a heap as did his papers. The Official was face down on his desk. The door slowly opened and booted foot steps were heard on the floor as they approached the unconscious men.  
  
A deep voice radioed to another, "This is the one we want. Tie him up and let's get out quickly, before they wake up."  
  
Hands grabbed at one of the unconscious on the floor, "Yes, sir."  
  
The men lifted up the form and carried him out. Once their catch was secured, the van quickly drove away.   
  
Thirty minutes later the Agency became alive again. Eberts moaned as he tried to get up off the floor. The Official lifted his head and gazed around with blurry vision. He was somewhat aware of a soft moan that came from his right side, which he suspected was Eberts, but there was another moan coming from somewhere else in the room. His eyes focused on a pair of hands that suddenly appeared on top of his desk. Who else was in the room with him, oh yes, Fawkes and Hobbes had been there. The Official watched as a head appeared and it grew to a rather tall lanky form that stumbled backwards to a chair.  
  
"Hmmfff!" The tall form moaned as it hit the chair rather hard. Hands grabbed at his head, "Aw, crap…what just happened?"  
  
"Darien?" The Official recognized Darien's voice.  
  
"Yeah, boss…it's me." Darien paused and he looked around with eyes that resembled small slits, "Hobbes…Hobbes?"  
  
TBC…. 


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4  
  
Claire staggered into the Official's office. She still felt the effects of the drug herself, "Is everyone alright?"  
  
"Well, that depends on what you think *alright* is. If alright is that I don't have a brain exploding headache where my eyes feel like they're about to pop out of my head any minute and I can feel every artery pulsating in my head, then I would have to say 'no'." Darien said as he looked up from the table he was now using to lay down on. "Is it that gas again?" He asked fearfully.   
  
"No," Claire smiled at Darien, "But those certainly are the side effects of the drug that was used on us." She held up a medical carrier with syringes and vials in it, "And I have the cure."  
  
"Great, more needles," Darien whined.  
  
"Well, I can just give you aspirin, but it would take longer and the headache will get worse, QSM worse." Claire held up gauze and a prepared syringe.  
  
"I'm first!" Darien hopped off the table and stuck out his arm. "We have another problem, Claire."  
  
"Yeah and what's that, Darien?" Claire prepared the injection site and inserted the needle into a vein. She pressed down on the plunger and the contents flowed into his arm.  
  
"Hobbes is missing."  
  
"What? Who would take Bobby? It's not the Chinese again is it?" Claire repeated the same procedure with the Official then Eberts.  
  
"I think it has to do with Hobbes investigation." Darien looked worried.   
  
"Maybe he got too close to finding the answer." Claire saw the look on Darien's face. She was just as worried as he was.  
  
Darien thought for a moment as ran his hand through his tattered hair, "But why come here?"  
  
The Official was in heavy thought, "Maybe they wanted to make a statement."  
  
"What…that they can take us out one at a time?" Darien sat down and waited for the headache to subside.  
  
The Official leaned back in his chair while he looked at Eberts, "Eberts, get Monroe on the phone, we're going to need her help on this one and she can keep an eye on Fawkes."  
  
"Yes, sir…right away, sir." Eberts quickly picked up the phone and called Alex Monroe.  
  
Darien rolled his eyes, "Great, is that necessary?"  
  
"Yes, I need protection for my most valuable agent." The Official said.  
  
"Don't you mean your most valuable gland?" Darien glared at the Official.  
  
The Official cocked his head and nodded, "Speaking of, Claire, I want you to check the gland, make sure that what ever drug was used didn't effect it."  
  
"Well thank you for your concern, the receptacle is feeling better. Thought I'd just let you know that." Darien left in a huff with Claire trailing behind him.  
  
~*~  
  
Hobbes woke up in a room, tied to a chair, gagged and blindfolded. Not a good thing to wake up too. The last thing he remembered was sitting in the Fat Man's office, feeling dizzy then everything went dark. He didn't even know if Fawkes was with him or not.  
  
Hobbes sat there for awhile before someone came in and spoke to him, "This will help with the headache."  
  
Hobbes felt a needle prick in his arm and then the gag was taken off. He moved his mouth around to loosen up the muscles, "You do realize I'm a Federal Agent for the United States of America and what you're doing…" Hobbes looked into the eyes of his captor. He tried to hide his emotion but couldn't.  
  
"Yes, yes…You remember me don't you?"   
  
"What do you want?" Hobbes followed the sounds of the footsteps.  
  
"To continue what was started several months ago."  
  
"Oh yeah, well, you're not going to get any help from me. Bobby Hobbes doesn't break so easily."   
  
"Oh, you did the last time."  
  
Hobbes listened as the footsteps walked away then stopped. He heard voices in the background. "Well, how 'bout I don't waste your time and you just go ahead and kill me."  
  
The man laughed, "Agent Hobbes, that's not our intention at least not yet."  
  
"I won't break," Hobbes kept repeating this in his mind.  
  
  
  
The man leaned down to whisper in Hobbes ear, "You will, Agent Hobbes, you will."  
  
Hobbes and Darien had spent months trying to heal from their last ordeal with the SWRB. They had tried to turn both of them into killing machines. The RATT device and the mental conditioning had worked on Hobbes, but on Darien, it had gone wrong. Now Hobbes feared that they had fixed their treatment and was ready to try it out again, which meant they must have Darien also.  
  
'I've got to hold myself together for the kid,' Hobbes thought to himself as he tested the restraints. "Hang in there, Fawkes, don't let them get to ya."  
  
~*~  
  
Darien walked into the Keep behind Claire and he stopped when he saw her turn around. A concerned expression was written all over her face as she ran to him and threw her arms around his neck, "I was so worried about you."  
  
Darien smiled, "You were?"  
  
"Yes, when Claire called me and asked to come in to help she told me what happened. Did the medication help?" Lehana ran her hand over his face.  
  
"Yeah, it's workin' but Hobbes is missing."   
  
"What?" Lehana said in shock.   
  
"Yeah, we think that the same people who almost killed me took him." Darien was concerned about his best friend. "These people well, are not very nice. I'm gonna go out to try and find him with Monroe after my tests are finished."  
  
"Darien, you be careful."  
  
"I will." He leaned down and pulled her in for a kiss. Claire stood off to the side and smiled. Darien broke the kiss and hugged her tight, "I can definitely get used to this."  
  
"Well, you know what they say, 'Once you've gone black you never go back.'"  
  
"Once you've gone vanilla no other flavah will thrill ya."  
  
Lehana laughed and looked up at him, "Is that what white people say?"  
  
"I don't know, I just made that up. I had to think of something for you," Darien said.  
  
"Ahem, I'm sorry to interrupt, but I need to run some tests on the gland," Claire announced.  
  
Darien rolled his eyes. He and Lehana walked towards the counteragent chair and he plopped himself down. "Uhm, Claire, how come you didn't tell me that Lee was here?"  
  
Claire looked at him with curved brows, "Lee? Well, we certainly are getting to know each other aren't we?"  
  
  
  
Lehana smiled as she looked at Darien. Darien looked at her and grinned. Claire noticed the two of them and waited. Neither one said a word as they continued to stare at each other. "Well, I guess that answers my question, which is why I didn't say anything. The Official may not allow me to call Dr. Rowe anymore when I need her help if you two are involved," Claire said as she got her supplies ready to run her tests.  
  
"Ah, the whole conflict of interest thing," Darien said as he took his shirt off and tossed it to Lehana. Darien was so used to Claire and her tests that he knew what he needed to do and didn't think twice about it. Lehana folded his shirt and set it down on the table, "Claire, do you need my help with anything?"  
  
"As a matter of fact, yes, I will need your help. The quicker we can get his tests done he can go out and find Bobby," Claire said.  
  
"True, I'll stick around then, just tell me what you want me to do," Lehana said.  
  
~*~  
  
Alex walked in the Official's office and she had an annoyed expression on her face, "What happened?"  
  
"SWRB," Darien said as he leaned up against the window. All his tests had come back normal and the gland was not affected by the chemicals used on him.  
  
"Are you sure?" Alex sat down.  
  
"Agent Hobbes apparently found evidence on some photographs that he suspected was SWRB." Eberts said.   
  
"Like what?" Alex asked.  
  
The Official turned to Eberts, "Show her."  
  
A few moments later, Alex was studying the information that Hobbes had gathered. She had combined it with what she had found. Darien studied the film that had been taken the day of the mission.   
  
Alex looked up, "You might not want to see what happens next," she said in a concerned voice.  
  
"I know," Darien paused as he looked at the screen. "But hey, I have another story to tell my grandchildren."  
  
Alex laughed, "The Invisible Geriatric Man, I can see it now…or not."  
  
"Very funny," Darien retorted. He stared at the screen and watched as the Darien on TV stumbled from the house. He shifted uneasily on the chair as he saw how close to death he really was.   
  
Darien was so busy watching Claire work on him that at first he didn't see the bushes move. But Alex did.   
  
"Whoa…what the hell was that?"  
  
"Ahh…I would say that's Claire putting a tube down my throat."  
  
"No…not that…rewind it," Alex moved closer to the TV. "Okay, stop there, now watch the bushes here." Alex pointed to the area. The bushes on the film moved, "There, right there, did you see it?"  
  
Darien rewound the tape again. "Oh crap…This is what Hobbes was talking about this morning only we didn't get this far."  
  
"Where are the time lapsed pictures…you know the ones with the black hummer in the background?"  
  
Darien and Alex scanned through the pictures that Hobbes had and they didn't see anything. Alex then pulled out the ones she had that were taken from a different angle.   
  
Darien looked at one picture and then another, "Oh…oh…Monroe, take a look." Darien showed her the pictures, "Look here, the door is closed, right?"  
  
"Right."  
  
Darien showed her the next one, "The door is opened," he grabbed the next one, "And now the door is closing…look…you put them together and you get one of those moving cartoon things."   
  
Alex watched as Darien stacked the pictures and then flipped through them quickly. They both watched as the door to the hummer opened and then closed without anyone visible. Alex and Darien looked at each other in shock.  
  
"Another invisible man or woman?" Alex said.  
  
"Or their doors automatically open and close," Darien retorted.  
  
The Official grunted. Alex and Darien turned to look at him. "How did they develop another gland?"  
  
"That's what I'm going to find out," Darien stood up and grabbed his jacket.  
  
"Be careful," The Official said.  
  
"I'll keep my eye on him," Alex added.  
  
Darien paused, "If they have him, Monroe, we need to find him."  
  
The black corvette convertible made its way down the streets of San Diego. Darien could tell that Alex kept looking at him since they left the Agency. Finally he turned to her, "What?"  
  
"So, how was it?"  
  
"How was what?"  
  
Alex shook her head, "Your date."  
  
Darien laughed, "Hobbes told you, huh? Well, it was a date until he crashed it. We ended up talking about his theories on who gassed the bad guys." Darien looked visibly nervous and Alex could tell that this whole incident had unnerved him  
  
"Darien, I read the reports on what they did to you and Hobbes. No one blames either of you for what happened that night at the Agency."  
  
Darien stared at Alex for a moment. She caught his far off stare. "Look, I know it's hard, having to relive what happened again, but…"  
  
"I know it's just that…I had started to make some progress in that department. You know, on the road to recovery. With Hobbes in their hands again…it scares me. It's bringing back memories of what they did to me, of what they tried to make me do."   
  
Alex reached and patted Darien on his knee in a reassuring way. Darien studied the hand on his knee and smiled. "You know, I bet most guys find you irresistible, but I find you totally resistible."   
  
Alex turned her head away from Darien and smirked, "Okay, I deserved that." Darien smiled as he stared off at the scenery as they drove down the street.  
  
~*~  
  
Hobbes was placed in an isolation room with only one door and four cement walls. A camera with a red blinking light was set up high in the top corner of the room. They had given him white scrubs to wear and socks. The only furniture in the room was a bed. He prepared himself mentally for the brainwashing to begin. He was determined that what happened the last time would not happen again.   
  
Like before, he had no watch on and the lights were kept dim. He knew the routine, confuse the subject and make him feel abandoned. The difference this time was that Hobbes was not restrained. This confused to him. "Ahh, but then maybe that's the point, to confuse me," he thought out loud to himself. "I would expect them to restrain me and start the brainwashing, but if they do things differently then before, then they would succeed in confusing me and that would make it easier for them." He sat on the bed and he thought about Fawkes. "I've got to get out of here and find him," he started to think of a plan to rescue his friend.   
  
TBC… 


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5  
  
Marek stood in the observation room watching the shorter agent pace, then sit down, get up and pace again only to sit down after a few laps around the small room. The reason for the Agency to hire this man to watch over Darien Fawkes was beyond him. And speaking of, how the Agency could agree to have a 17 million dollar government experiment implanted into the head of a thief was another mystery to the experienced ex-CIA agent. Marek was definitely cut from the same mold as Simon Cole and was more deserving of this unique opportunity than this Darien Fawkes person.   
  
No Name stood next to Marek in the small room. His plan was to show that the choice to use Darien Fawkes was a mistake and continues to be a mistake made by the Official. No Name had learned about Charlie Borden's connection to the Fawkes family and it all made sense. What Borden did was to show loyalty to his long time friend Dr. Peter Donovan by saving his pathetic excuse for a nephew. Then there was the brilliant older brother, Dr. Kevin Fawkes who pleaded with Borden to help his prison bound younger brother. How loyal was Borden to Darien Fawkes remained to be seen. He had read the files and it seemed to be an odd relationship. Borden had ordered Fawkes' Keeper not to give him the cure for quicksilver madness. Did he believe the Keeper would come up with new counteragent to keep Fawkes on the leash? Probably not. He needed, no, wanted a gland that he could control no matter whose head it was in. Fawkes was just a victim of circumstance and a successful experiment. Borden was probably going to harvest the gland and re-implant it into someone more desirable.   
  
To No Name, putting the gland into the head of someone like Darien was a waste of money and time. But then again, after the failure with Simon Cole maybe that was the reason Borden chose the younger Fawkes. If the gland had failed again, who would care about the loss of Darien's life? Kevin would of course, but he must have known it would succeed or else he wouldn't have risked his brother's life no matter how useless he had turned out. Kevin must have promised Borden that he could remove it if the experiment was a success.   
  
No Name's scientists had worked overnight for months to develop their own gland based on the information Darien was able to obtain. Sure they had setbacks in development and testing, but then again, you can't make an omelet without cracking a few eggs. And the mental hospital they had Agent Hobbes in was full of those cracked eggs.  
  
Some test subjects didn't even survive the surgical procedure and others just simply rejected the gland. In one case when the subject tried to quicksilver it flowed from the man's ears instead and killed him instantly. The autopsy revealed that the macroganglias had not been fused properly and quicksilver leaked into the subject's cranium. The leak resulted in the instant freezing of the brain. The test subjects were mainly homeless or people that society deemed unacceptable and not really contributing to the community anyway. No one would miss them.   
  
Fawkes and Hobbes' investigation of the dentist had put a stop to one avenue of getting healthy test subjects, but No Name had other means, other options and he had used them all. The result was getting the gland to work properly and the final implantation into Marek's head, but with one added feature. Marek can only go invisible if he's given a shot. Sort of like jumper cables when the car battery dies. No Name wanted a way to control *his* invisible man. He didn't want any unauthorized invisibility. Unlike Darien Fawkes, Marek couldn't go invisible whenever he wanted to. That meant no spying or eaves dropping in on private conversations. Marek could only remain invisible for a short period of time, thirty minutes to be exact. That was fine by No Name's standards, thirty minutes was plenty of time for his invisible man to assassinate someone or plant a bomb.  
  
No Name turned to face Marek, "Let's get started shall we?"  
  
"I can't wait."  
  
No Name walked out into the hallway and met with Dr. Bruckner. "What is your clinical diagnosis of this patient, doctor?"  
  
The psychiatrist looked No Name right in the eyes, "I'd say that this patient is suffering from psychizophrenia. He seems to be out of touch with reality. He claims that he's an agent and his partner can turn invisible."  
  
"And what can be done for him?"  
  
"Well, I'm going to start him on Thorazine and see if we can get him under control."  
  
No Name smiled. "Keep me informed of his progress." No Name walked away with Marek beside him, "This is what I want you to do."  
  
~*~  
  
Hobbes sat in a room surveying his surroundings. The room looked like an activity center that you would find in a mental hospital and he would know what one looked like. He spent a fair amount of time in one. There were other *patients* sitting at the various tables that were strategically placed around the room. Each table sat four but most of the tables were occupied by only one person. Everyone wore white scrubs including Hobbes. The only door into and out of the room was heavily guarded by two large men with batons. Hobbes suspected that they were cattle prods of some kind. He was not going to get out this place, at least not without getting the day lights shocked out of him. He would have to wait for a more ample opportunity to come his way. For now, he watched and waited.  
  
At one table a man sat in a wheel chair with his head tilted to one side and a bib wrapped around his neck to soak up his own drool. Hobbes crinkled his nose in disgust at the sight before him. At first one might think that he was an overgrown baby, but the only thing that was different was his eyes. Instead of his eyes being filled with wonder and curiosity like a baby, his eyes were blank. The man's hands rested on a tray attached to his wheelchair.   
  
Except for a few gurgling sounds and the head jerk reaction to having too much saliva in his mouth, the man didn't move an inch. Hobbes noted that he barely blinked his eyes. "Oh yeah, not only are the lights off and no one's home, but the electricity's been cut," he said quietly to himself as he continued to study the other people in the room.  
  
He saw another man sitting alone at a table with a game of checkers in front of him. The man just sat staring at the board and then at the empty chair in front of him. He would motion to the empty chair as if he was telling the person to make the next move. Hobbes shook his head, "I'm not so nutso after all."  
  
Off in the corner was a ping pong table occupied by two men. One would hit the small plastic ball to the other. The second man would watch the ball go by and then slowly swing his paddle. This of course upset the other man to no end. He would throw down his paddle in disgust and fetch the ball to start the whole process all over again.   
  
At another table a man leaned up against the wall with terrified eyes. He sat continuously banging the back of his head against the wall. Another man sat next to him trying to slash his wrists with an invisible knife or blade. "I'm in the SWRB nut house," Hobbes mused to himself.  
  
Every now and then a brutish looking orderly would come in carrying a tray full of little white cups. Hobbes knew that some of those cups contained medicine and others were filled with water. The orderly would walk up to each person and call them by name in a tone like he was talking to a child. In some cases he probably was Hobbes thought as he looked on intently. The only one who didn't receive pills orally was the one Hobbes dubbed 'the drool bucket'. His medication was inserted into the IV port that was on his hand.  
  
The orderly bypassed Hobbes all together. In fact, he didn't even look at Hobbes as he walked by. He looked at the chess game that was before him and shrugged his shoulders, "Oh well, when in Rome do as the Romans do." As he was about to move a piece and play a game of Hobbes vs. Hobbes, a piece moved by itself, he looked around quickly. A smile spread across his face, "I knew you'd find me."  
  
Hobbes leaned in closer towards the table, "I need for you to take out those two mooks over there." He moved his eyes to point in the direction of the two guards. He made a move on the chess board to give the illusion that he was playing. He waited for Darien to take out the two guards, but it never happened.   
  
Hobbes heard a shout of joy when the checker man leaped for joy out of his chair. He pointed to the board, "He finally made a move!" The checker man clapped his hands and sat back down. No one in the room other than Hobbes even bothered to look at the man's display of delight. They were all too doped up on medication to care.   
  
"Fawkes, what are you doing?" Hobbes said in a slightly raised aggravated tone.   
  
"Who are you talking to Mr. Hobbes?" Dr. Bruckner said as he moved from behind Hobbes to stand in front of him.  
  
Hobbes stood up, "You can't keep me here."  
  
"And why is that?" Dr. Bruckner asked as he folded his arms in front of him. That jester was a signal to the two large guards. They started to approach Hobbes from behind slowly. "Is it because you still think you're a special agent for the United States Government?"  
  
Hobbes stepped aside from the table. "I *am* a government agent and you're committing an act of kidnapping."  
  
Dr. Bruckner shook his head in dismay, "I see that we still have a long way to go." With a slight nod to his head the two guards reached for Hobbes.  
  
Hobbes managed to get a back kick into the gut area of one before the other shocked him with the baton. Hobbes laid on the ground grunting in pain as he clutched his kidney area. Dr. Bruckner pulled out a syringe and injected Hobbes with the contents inside.  
  
"Now, Mr. Hobbes, we can have a talk." The two guards lifted Hobbes up roughly and dragged him out of the room. As they left the doctor turned around and smiled at the other patients. They all smiled back except for the drooling man.   
  
Hobbes sat on the chair feeling a bit fatigued. Dr. Bruckner came in and sat down on a chair across from him. "Now, Mr. Hobbes, let's talk for a little while. Why do you believe you're an agent?"  
  
"Cause I am." Hobbes could barely sit up straight.  
  
"Tell me you're full name."  
  
"Robert Albert Hobbes."  
  
"Very good. And where were you born?"  
  
"Brooklyn, New York."  
  
"Very good. And what is your occupation?"  
  
"Government agent."  
  
"Actually, you're in textiles."  
  
Hobbes looked at him with crinkled brows, "No, that's one of my covers."  
  
"Do you have a partner?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"And what's his name?"  
  
"Darien Fawkes." Hobbes was finding it increasingly difficult to fight the drug he was given.  
  
"Mr. Hobbes, we checked on Darien Fawkes, he's in prison for molesting an elderly man during a break-in. There's no possible way he could be your partner."  
  
Hobbes had an irritated expression on his face now, "No, they let him out."  
  
"I doubt that, Mr. Hobbes, he was sentenced to life with no hope of parole. He's already served a little over three years of his life sentence." Dr. Bruckner pulled out a file and showed it to Hobbes. "Here, I want you to look at these pictures," he showed Hobbes a picture of Darien's mug shot, "Is this the man you think is your partner?"  
  
Hobbes looked at it, "I don't think, I know." His tone was harsh.  
  
"Mr. Hobbes look at these other pictures," he handed Hobbes the stack of pictures. They were of Darien in prison uniform at Bakersfield.   
  
"No, no, this can't be." Hobbes tossed the pictures to the floor. "I know what you're doing to me and it won't work!" He shouted as he pointed to the doctor.  
  
"And what are we trying to do to you?"  
  
"You're trying to make me believe that the past three years of my life have been an illusion…well let me tell you something, it wasn't. I know who I am and I know who my partner is!" Hobbes was visibly angry and his adrenaline was helping him fight the drug at the moment. "Bobby Hobbes maybe crazy but I'm not that crazy."  
  
"Yes, let's talk about that."  
  
"I've got nothing more to say to you."  
  
"Why did your wife leave you?"  
  
"I said I've got nothing more to say to you." Hobbes was ready to belt the doctor right in the mouth until he stopped when he heard Vivian's name.  
  
"You still love Vivian don't you? She remarried didn't she?"  
  
Hobbes searched his thoughts about Vivian, "I don't want to talk about it." Hobbes regained his composure, "Where is Fawkes!?!"  
  
"I told you…he's at the maximum security penitentiary at Bakersfield. Oh but of course, even a maximum security prison can't hold an invisible man."  
  
Hobbes glared at the man before him. He was about to say something but pulled his unspoken words back into his mouth. He wanted to see how much this doctor knew.  
  
"Mr. Hobbes, that's the reason why you're here, "When you divorced from Vivian, she said that you stalked her and that you acted strangely."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Yes, she's very concerned about you. She said that you attacked her fiancé."  
  
"Wait, how did you know that?"  
  
"Mr. Hobbes, you told us that."  
  
"No I didn't."  
  
"Yes, you did. How else would we know about Vivian and Darien Fawkes your partner who can turn invisible? I think that would be top secret information wouldn't it?"  
  
Hobbes grabbed his head, "You're trying to confuse me. Put words in my mouth. Vivian and I divorced, she remarried and my partner is Darien Fawkes!"  
  
"Can he turn invisible?"  
  
"What do you think?"  
  
"I ask the questions here, Mr. Hobbes. Why do you think the government would hire a man like Darien Fawkes?"  
  
Hobbes smiled, "Ahhh…you are trying to mess with my mind. No Name put you up to this didn't he? I already know, I've seen him so don't try to say you don't know him cause you do know him."  
  
"Who is No Name?"  
  
"The guy that runs the SWRB…Secret Weapons Research Branch."  
  
"And what would a man like that be doing in a mental hospital?"  
  
"Cause this is where all his failed experiments go."  
  
"And what experiments would that be?"  
  
"How should I know…that's why they're called the Secret Weapons Research Branch…it's a secret branch that researches weapons."  
  
"So you think all these people here are the result of botched experiments by this No Name person?"  
  
Hobbes leaned forward on his seat, "My name is Robert Hobbes, I'm an agent of the Untied States of America."  
  
Dr. Bruckner stood up and walked over to the door and opened it. "You can take Mr. Hobbes back to the activity room now. I think we'll talk again later."  
  
Hobbes grinned at the doctor as he was escorted out still repeating his name and who he worked for. During the walk back to the room he expected Fawkes to show up again, but like before it didn't happen. This was frustrating to Hobbes. He knew he saw that piece move.   
  
Once inside the room he sat at the table trying to piece things together in his mind. What was No Name doing this time? Did Fawkes move that chess piece? How about the other's guys checker piece? Did he move it himself or did Fawkes and why? Why didn't Fawkes help him to escape? How did that doc get those pics of Fawkes at Bakersfield? Why would they try to make him believe that the past three years was an illusion? Was he really still stalking Vivian and was Fawkes actually spending a life sentence in prison? Why would he think that Fawkes was his partner?  
  
Hobbes shook off those last questions. He wasn't stalking Vivian and Fawkes was his partner. He suddenly thought about Fawkes and what they could be doing to him. He looked at his chess pieces. "This is nothing but a mind game," he picked up one of the pawn pieces and held it in his hand, "…and my sanity is the pawn. Don't let them get to you or it's check mate…game over." He looked around, "Okay, I'll play your little game." He put the pawn back on the game board, "Let's see who gets a check mate first."  
  
~*~  
  
Darien sat in front of Alex's desk in her new office. She was hired back by the FBI. "Just one thing I don't get, Monroe."  
  
"What's that?"  
  
"Why Hobbes? I mean if I'm the one they want, why take Hobbes?"  
  
"Headgames, Fawkes."  
  
"Headgames?"  
  
"Yeah, only I think it's meant for the Official and not you."  
  
Darien thought for a moment. An expression of understanding came across his face as if a light bulb turned on in his head. "Oh you mean like revenge kind of headgames?"  
  
"Exactly."  
  
"Then who's next? Me?"  
  
"Yeah, I think so. Next to you, No Name doesn't care about anybody else but the Official. Claire and Eberts mean nothing to him. He has scientists and pencil pushers already. But the Official is the one who he sees as stealing the QS-9300 Project away from the SWRB in the first place. Hobbes and you escaped from them before and well, it's probably an ego thing with him."  
  
"So what else is new." Darien commented more as a statement in a tone that showed he knew what was going to happen. He got up and walked around her desk to see what see was doing. "What'd we do next?"  
  
Alex leaned back in her chair, "I've been trying to track any leads as to where the new SWRB headquarters are at, but they do know how to cover up their tracks. And no one at the FBI, CIA or even the NSA are saying anything."  
  
"Afraid?" Darien questioned as he leaned on the desk.  
  
"Yeah, I guess so." Alex sounded like she didn't know what to do next.  
  
"I think I might know where to look," Darien said as he straightened to his full height. "Come on, let's go find Hobbes."  
  
TBC…. 


	6. Chapter 6 LAST CHAPTER

Chapter 6  
  
Later on the evening, Darien pulled the van over to the curb. He glanced worriedly at Alex. She met his gaze with a concerned look of her own, "Are you sure about this?"  
  
"No, but it's the best shot we have right now."  
  
"I know, but that's not what I'm talking about. You almost died a week ago. I don't think you should be doing this so soon."   
  
Darien turned his gaze to look out the window towards the building he was about to sneak into. "I have to," he replied sullenly. He turned to glance at Alex again, "I have to do this for Hobbes."  
  
Alex shook her head, "I knew we'd make a true agent out of you yet. You're just as loyal to Hobbes as he is to you. I admire that."  
  
Darien cocked his head to one side, "Really?" A compliment from Alex was the last thing he expected to hear, especially one aimed at him. From the beginning there was distrust from her, but could he blame her. But he also knew that when it comes to an agent like Alex, respect is earned. Since a cure was found and his own training began, he learned that agents should trust no one. The kind of trust he has with Hobbes was earned and at times not very easily. Even they had their problems at the start of their partnership. Darien didn't even want Hobbes, now he couldn't trust anyone else like he trusts his short, bald, nutso of a partner.  
  
"Yeah, I do. Now go see what you can find," Alex smiled as she patted him on the leg. She then tossed him the knit cap with the little turtle on it. She winked at him when he shot her a disgruntled glare. "Hey, I want to see what you see."  
  
"Nosey." Darien put the hat on and then the ear piece. He quicksilvered and left the van. Alex got up from the passenger seat, and sat in the back of the van. She turned on the equipment and saw that the world through Darien's vision had turned silver. "Fawkes, can you hear me now?" She smiled at her endeavor of easing the situation.  
  
"That's the funniest thing you've said since I've know you," Darien quipped.   
  
"Ha-ha, just be careful okay?"  
  
"Hey, this is me you're talking 'bout. I'm always careful."  
  
"Yeah and I can think of at least three times you got caught sneaking into a building and that's since I've known you."  
  
"For your information, I've improved."  
  
"I'll believe it when I see it."  
  
"You're gonna sister." Darien approached the building. "Okay, here goes, I'm going in."  
  
Alex turned away from the monitor for a moment and placed her hand on the ear piece, "Be careful, Fawkes, I mean that."  
  
The building was the same one that he had sneaked into two years ago when he first met Augustin Gaither. Darien wasn't sure if this would lead him to Hobbes but he had to give it a chance. He slowly made his way to the main office. Being that it was late at night there were very few staff members around. Mainly he saw the larger, burley type guards standing around talking or watching late night TV with Conan O'Brien. Darien walked by them with ease.   
  
Darien turned a corner and started down the darkened hall which was lit by every three light fixtures embedded in the white tiled ceiling. He saw his intended target, the main office. His hope was to find where these SWRB nutcases are coming from. And that information he hoped would lead him to Hobbes.   
  
Across town No Name sat at his desk. He had leaned back in his chair. The expression he wore on his face was that of a man in deep thought. Things were moving too slow in his opinion and that in his mind was not in his favor. He spoken at length with Dr. Bruckner earlier and regardless of the fact that Agent Hobbes had appeared to be responding favorable to treatment, it still didn't set his mind at ease. Agent Hobbes may have real life mental issues to work out but that didn't mean that he was weak mentally or physically. No, actually the other way around, Hobbes could very easily use his own mental shortcomings to his advantage. No Name suspected that Hobbes was acting. He understood the mindset of agents and knowing Hobbes paranoia would mean he wouldn't fall for the same trick again.   
  
The phone rang tearing him away from his thoughts. He nearly threw the phone up against the wall in annoyance, he hated to be interrupted even if he was in a meeting with his own mind. "This is him," he answered, but his tone implied, 'I'm busy and you interrupted something very important.'  
  
"Sorry sir, but we thought you'd like to know that we have an intruder."  
  
No Name sat straight in his chair, "Who and where?"  
  
"At the Alpha House sir, and uh…it's Agent Fawkes."  
  
His lips curled up in a smile. "You know what to do."  
  
"Yes, sir."  
  
No Name didn't place the phone back on the receiver instead he dialed a number and waited patiently.  
  
"Yes," came the half groggy greeting.  
  
"Come to my office now. We have something to discuss."  
  
"Yes, sir."  
  
No Name put the phone back on the receiver and leaned back in his chair again. His elbows rested on the desk as he put his hands together. Now things were about to go the way he wanted all along.  
  
Darien entered the main office and examined the area first. He wanted to find something that had New Arrivals or something to that effect written on it. He knew that when he was brought to prison, the records would show what jail he was transported from. Darien hoped that the mental institution worked the same way. If these were SWRB nut cases then he should find some type of paperwork stating where they were transported or picked up from. If he had that, then he could check to see if Hobbes was at that particular location.  
  
He quickly scanned through the files trying to find any clues. Back in the van, Alex was getting nervous. She knew all to well what these people were capable of. From the corner of the monitor she saw the door open. She nearly bolted from her chair. "Oh…Fawkes…the door, someone's coming," she warned through the ear piece.  
  
Darien put the file down and went to the opposite end of the room. He watched as a man walked in and placed a file in a box marked, 'Incoming'. He walked out without incident. Alex and Darien let out a sigh of relief in unison. He walked over to the box and pulled out the file. "I have to tell you, Alex…oh crap…I found it."  
  
"What in the box marked, 'Incoming'?" She thought about it and shook her head, "Never mind."  
  
"Kind of a warped sense of humor don't you think, but then we are dealing with the SWRB. I think they have a degree in warped humor…" Darien spoke as he copied down the information. He didn't want to bother with a copying machine again. He stuffed the paper in his pocket and quickly headed out the door.  
  
Marek sat across from No Name as they waited for the phone to ring. They didn't have to wait long. "This is him...good." He glanced at Marek and grinned victoriously, "Agent Fawkes has taken the bait."  
  
"What about Agent Hobbes, I'm not done with him yet."  
  
"You are now, I'm changing the plan. Agent Fawkes moved sooner than I thought he would. I don't have time to wait for Agent Hobbes to have a mental break down. Take him and meet your…brother…at the warehouse. I want Agent Fawkes brought back here...alive."  
  
"What about Agent Hobbes?"  
  
"Who?"  
  
Marek nodded his understanding. He rose to his feet and walked out of the office as No Name watched. Before the night was over, Agent Fawkes would be his and his paranoid partner would be gone. This marked the end of the Agency and Charlie Borden. Victory never tasted so sweet. With Agent Hobbes drugged, Agent Fawkes in a weakened state, they would be no match for an agent trained like Marek.  
  
Alex drove the van as Darien stared out the window. Alex had been deep thought about the situation and she decided it was time to break the silence. "Fawkes…"  
  
"I know, it's a set-up."  
  
"You know?"  
  
"Yeah, I mean come on, that guy just so happens to lay the exact information I needed in plain sight."  
  
"And…" Alex shot Darien a look that showed there was another reason and she knew it.  
  
Darien shook his head slowly, "And…when you've worked with Hobbes for years, you become paranoid and start thinking angles."  
  
"There you go, but your first choice was right on the money too."  
  
"So, what'd we do?"  
  
Alex looked at Darien, "We call for back-up."  
  
"Monroe, we both know that the Agency safety net isn't worth crap. Besides you're all the back-up I need."  
  
Alex smiled, "Well thank you, Fawkes, but even when you're healthy you're still no match for them…we need back-up."  
  
"Oh thanks for the vote of confidence…but you're right, I do tend to get my ass kicked a lot. But I'm better, Hobbes' been teachin' me things." Darien looked at Alex seriously, "We can handle this, I know we can."  
  
"Darien, this is a trap…for you."  
  
"I know."  
  
"And if anything happens to you…my ass is on the line here."  
  
"I didn't know you cared." Darien stated matter-of-factly rather than a question.  
  
"I do. Granted, you were given a free get-out-of-jail card and at times you miss-used the gland, but these past couple of years you've proven yourself. I respect that." She looked at Darien more sternly this time, "I'm calling in for back-up. I'll tell them not to move in unless I say so…deal?"  
  
Darien studied her for a moment trying to figure out if she was being honest. He had no choice, she was the seasoned agent and in charge here. "Deal," he gave in. He was tired now and it showed in his voice. He had gone back to work way too soon but he couldn't just sit around while Hobbes was in danger.   
  
Alex pulled the van over, "We're here." She turned her gaze to Darien, "Take the gun in the glove compartment with you." Surprised, Darien turned to look at her.  
  
"You remind me of a deer looking into headlights."  
  
"Can you blame me?"  
  
"Look, I know you've been in training…I trust you…and don't forget to take the extra clips with you." Alex added sarcastically.  
  
"Right," Darien retorted. He pulled the gun and the clips out of the glove compartment. He stuffed them into his jacket and glanced at Alex. Both wore worried expressions on their faces. Darien knew that he shouldn't even be attempting anything like this so soon. But Hobbes was in danger and he couldn't just lie around in bed waiting for someone else to rescue him. Darien checked his watch and exited the van. Alex watched as the quicksilver coated the tall lanky form of Darien. She silently wished him luck and went to the back of the van to monitor Darien's movements.  
  
Darien waited five minutes before going into the building. It was eerily quiet and dark. His eyes darted around as he walked very slowly. At least the quicksilver vision gave him the ability to see as if he was wearing night vision goggles.  
  
In the van, Alex noticed a black van pull up and three men get out wearing combat fatigues. "Damn it, it is a trap," she said as she shook her head. She clicked on the microphone, "Fawkes."  
  
"What's up?"  
  
"You've got company, three bears are heading your way and they have thermals."  
  
"It figures."  
  
"I'll take care of them, you just concentrate on finding Hobbes," Alex said as she checked her gun.   
  
Darien stealthily walked around some long ago abandoned shelves that were now empty and had at least an inch of dust on them. Without thinking he put his hand on one to keep his balance as he bent down to peer through them. He moved his head around a bit to get a better view and that's when he saw Hobbes just sitting in a chair. Dust slowly drifted down to his face as he moved his hand to try and get a better view. "Oh crap," Darien muttered annoyingly when he felt the familiar tickling sensation in his nose. Like an alarm going off, he sneezed into the empty building. The sound ricocheted off the walls. "Now you've done it," Darien mentally slapped himself.  
  
There wasn't much time to react as hell broke lose inside the building. Hobbes knew Marek was around and so was Darien. "Fawkes! It's a trap!" Hobbes yelled. Darien rushed to Hobbes to untie him but the image of a green ghost stopped him in his tracks.   
  
"Hello, brother," Marek's disembodied voice rang out.  
  
"The only brother I have is dead," Darien spit out in a tone of disgust.  
  
The sounds of gunfire broke the standoff between the two invisible agents. Darien lunged for Marek only to be cast aside like a rag doll. Darien was no match for the skills that Marek possessed. "You can't beat me, Fawkes. So why don't you join me and work for a real agency."  
  
Darien got off the floor to his full height and turned his attention back to Marek, "I've seen how your agency works. No thanks. I may not totally trust the Fat Man but I'd choose him over your boss any day."   
  
Marek approached Darien, "Your choice." He grabbed Darien and threw him across the room. Hobbes had worked diligently on the ropes and was able to get enough slack to nearly pull his hands free. When Darien slid across the floor by Hobbes, his gun came out to rest at Hobbes feet. Alex rushed into the room and stopped as silver flakes burst in the air. Marek stood there looking down at himself. The time had expired for him to use the quicksilver. He lifted up his gun to fire at Hobbes.  
  
Darien didn't notice Alex and lunged for Hobbes. Two shots rang out. Darien felt a sharp pain in his shoulder as he knocked Hobbes down to the ground. Both men grunted when they landed. Alex kept her gun raised and kept her focus on Marek.   
  
The quicksilver flaked off of Darien and he rolled onto his back clutching his left shoulder. Hobbes glanced up and saw Marek fall to the ground. He turned his attention and saw Alex slowly approach the fallen man with her gun still trained on him. Darien groaned in pain.   
  
"Fawkes!" Hobbes said as he positioned himself to check his partner. "Not again."  
  
"Yep, again."  
  
"What were you thinking? I'm the one that's supposed to protect you," Hobbes said as he applied pressure to Darien's wound.  
  
"Hey, we're partners, we watch each other's back." A pained expression spread across Darien's face. Alex approached the two men.  
  
"Well, how's the wacko I-Man?" Hobbes asked.  
  
"He's dead," Alex said. She bent down and knelt next to Darien. "I'm impressed, Fawkes, taking a bullet for your partner."  
  
"Well, impressed or not, this hurts like hell." Darien was clearly irritated. "You know, an ambulance would be a good right now."  
  
Alex looked up and watched the back-up from the Agency rush in. The three of them laughed. "On time as usual, I guess things haven't changed all that much," Alex muttered. She looked down at Darien and put her hand on his good shoulder, "Don't worry, Claire is on her way."  
  
"I knew we could do it," Darien said.  
  
Some time later, Darien could hear voices and the sound of something beeping. 'Where am I?' He questioned himself in his half groggy state.  
  
"He's waking up." Darien heard an accented female voice announce. "Claire?" He spoke sleepily.  
  
"Yes, Darien, can you open your eyes?"  
  
With all his strength he opened his eyes. Blurry vision and bright lights forced his eyes closed again. But he tried again. He could see Claire's outline and someone else. Lehana. He turned his gaze towards her, "Lee?"  
  
"Hey, boo, welcome back."  
  
Darien smiled. "Hi."  
  
Claire smiled and motioned for Hobbes to leave. Before he left he tapped Darien on the healthy shoulder, "Hey, you did great. Thanks…again." The two men smiled and gave each other a low five.  
  
Lehana watched as Hobbes and Claire left giving them some time to be alone. Darien ran his hand along her face, "Still want to go out with me?"  
  
"It's no different than being a cop's wife." Lehana bent down and kissed him gently on his lips. She raised herself partly up and smiled down at him. "I've got something for you."  
  
"Really?" Darien seemed surprised.  
  
Lehana got up and walked over to a table. She picked up a small container, walked back to Darien's bed and handed it to him. He looked at the small item and looked at her stunned, "The bullet? You're giving me the bullet?"  
  
"Yeah, why not? Consider it your medal of honor."  
  
"A raise would be better."  
  
"Well, I could give you a raise, but just not the one you're thinking about right now." Lehana moved her hand down his chest.  
  
Darien wiggled his brow, "I could use that kind of raise too."  
  
"I bet you could."  
  
The door slid open and the Official walked in followed by Eberts. Claire and Hobbes followed and they all gathered around Darien. "Just thought I'd let you know that we've taken care of the SWRB and the other gland," the Official paused and then continued, "It seems that while you were under their control, you stole the QS9300 files."  
  
Darien's face paled. The Official held up his hand, "Don't worry, you didn't know what you were doing. That's how they were able to make a gland of their own."  
  
"Ah, excuse me sir, but what's to keep them from making another one?" Hobbes stated.  
  
"The Official contacted…" Eberts paused as if in thought of what to say next. After a moment he continued, "…someone high up and informed them of the mishandling of top secret Government information by the SWRB. They were ordered to hand everything over pertaining to the QS9300 Project back to us. No Name has been shall we say, put on administrative leave until the investigation is over."  
  
"He's being investigated? I thought these guys were untouchable?" Darien asked.  
  
"Not anymore. Not when it comes to almost killing a Government Agent and putting other agents in harms way. Darien, you acted like a true agent, good job." The Official turned and left the room. Eberts smiled at him and left as well.  
  
Claire and Hobbes put their arms around each other and looked at Darien. "Well, as soon as hairball is better, how 'bout the four of us going out for some lobster?"  
  
"Sounds good to me," Claire stated. "We missed the last lobster dinner didn't we Darien?"  
  
"Please don't remind me," Darien groaned. Hobbes laughed as Lehana looked at them curiously.  
  
"I'll explain it to you later, Lehana." Claire commented with a hint of embarrassment in her voice. Darien rolled his eyes.  
  
A few days later, Darien sat on his couch. Lehana brought him a tray full of food. She set it down in front of him. "You didn't have to do this," he commented as he sat straight up. He could smell what she was cooking, but she refused to let him in the kitchen. The scent from the kitchen had been driving him crazy all day and now he didn't know where to begin. On the plate was fried chicken, collard greens, fried cornbread and macaroni and cheese.   
  
"I told you I was going to cook you dinner and here it is. And I have peach cobbler for desert." She sat down next to him and ran her fingers through his hair.  
  
"What about you? Aren't you going to eat?"  
  
"I ate as I cooked," she shrugged her shoulders. "I'll eat desert with you and I mean the peach cobbler."  
  
"I wasn't thinking that." Darien scooped up a helping of collard greens and filled his mouth.   
  
"Heh, I know you Mr. Darien Fawkes."  
  
"Hey, I'm a man of my word. I promised that we would get to know each other first and then we can decide to go that next step." Darien took a bite of the chicken.  
  
"You're also a con."  
  
"Ex-con thank you."  
  
"Okay, you got me on that one." She twirled a piece of his hair with her finger. "Still nervous about meeting my parents?"  
  
"Yeah, uh…do they know about me?"  
  
"About you being a man?"  
  
"Cute. But that's not exactly what I meant."  
  
"Oh, you mean about you being a white man?"  
  
"Well yeah."  
  
"Yes, I did and besides, you're not white, you're mocha. Larry Bird is white."  
  
"Ah no, he's clear."  
  
Lehana laughed, "True that." She looked at him supportively, "You'll be fine. I promise. They don't have those hang-ups." She leaned forward and gave him a kiss on his cheek. She then cuddled next to him as he ate. Soon after dinner they had desert and nearly finished off the cobbler. Lehana checked the wound on his shoulder. He was healing nicely and should be able to return to work soon. The decided to watch a classic Humphrey Bogart movie and cuddled on the couch to watch. Halfway through the movie, they fell asleep. For the first time since having the gland implanted, Darien slept peacefully without having a single nightmare. He finally found contentment and real love with the woman sleeping by his side. 


End file.
